Fight For Life
by X.KT22.X
Summary: What makes us human? Hope, Loyalty, Trust, Fear, Lust, Anger, Courage, Love, Despair, Compassion, Panic, Family. The need to survive? These things that define us, these things that give us a reason to fight...will they also be the things to destroy us?
1. Chapter One

**Disclaimer: I do not own _The Walking Dead_ in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF! The only reward I get is some extra space up in my brain thanks to freeing an idea...and hopefully a little ego boost with each review. **

***FIGHT FOR LIFE***

_Four weeks. Twenty eight days. Six hundred and seventy two hours. Forty thousand three hundred and twenty minutes. That's all the time it took for the world as we know it to end and fall into complete and utter chaos. This time last year I was just your average thirty-something woman living in Rochester, New York working long tiring hours as a doctor while spending most nights juggling a very quiet social life with extremely strong family commitments...back then I would have called it boring and mundane but compared to life now I'd give anything to have it back to the way it was dullness and all._

The 1978 wood panelled station wagon chugged sluggishly down the disserted highway passing several abandoned cars on its way; I gazed out of the dusty windshield at the clear open road before me sighing softly once realizing that those cars weren't as empty as I first thought. In the last couple of weeks things concerning the outbreak had rapidly gotten out of hand, what had started out as a few cases scattered across the country quickly became a major problem with identified infection being diagnosed around the world; the government tried to keep the public in the dark for as long as possible but when the dead start coming back to life it becomes harder to just brush under the rug... after everything was out in the open it didn't take long for the major cities to fall which is why I like to keep to small towns as much as possible.

Surviving in a post-apocalyptic world is hard and if it weren't for my upbringing by an army colonel father than I don't think I'd have made it this far; thanks to an early tip off from my brother (Major Jason Ellis) we were able to gather together as a family before things got super bad. Jay, his wife Jaime and their five year old son Sean lived in Florida and couldn't make the trip up to D.C -where my parents resided- so that was when my father decided that the rest of us (consisting of himself, mom, me, my younger sister Lacey and her daughter Ashley) would make the risky journey down to them and hopefully gain entry to the well protected and armed Camp Blanding. Even with the head start and all of my dad's planning things didn't turn out so well and following an extremely tragic and emotional event I became the sole guardian of my fifteen year old niece. With the majority of the family deceased uniting with what was left seemed all the more important which is why heading to The Sunshine State was still our plan of action; in the early days the further out from the big cities you got the less infection you found but over time that lessened considerably and now finding an untouched community was almost impossible. I was pulled from my musings when a loud splutter sounded from under the hood, a strange rumble had been growing in the engine over the last week but so far the old beast of a machine had kept working which I'm mighty thankful for because if there's one thing I know shit little about its cars.

"Is everything okay?" Bright baby blue eyes flicked up to the rear-view mirror, instantly locking with the set of dark brown ones belonging to the teen sitting in back. My sister was always a bit of a wild child growing up, she would go out for hours on end only coming back when exhausted, hungry or out of money -which was usually stolen from one parent or the other- personally I believe she only acted like that to get some attention from our workaholic and hardly home father. Lacey was only fifteen when she fell pregnant, the same age Ashley is now coincidentally, after finishing high school young mother and child came to live with me in New York due to the endless arguments Lace and dad would get into. I loved my daddy with all of my heart but Colonel Patrick Ellis did have his fair share of flaws and it took a very patient and special person to put up with him...which just made my mom that little extra amazing. "Charlotte?"

"Huh?"

"I asked about the car." Ashley shuffled forward so that she could rest her crossed arms atop the back of the front bench. "It's making that weird sound again isn't it?"

"Yeah and it's louder than yesterday." I moved my tired eyes back to the road, quickly wiping away a bead of sweat as it slowly trailed down the side of my face. "I'm not sure what the trouble is and seeing as we can't exactly drop by an auto shop to get whatever's wrong fixed we're just going to have to hope that this bucket on wheels can last until we get through Atlanta." Before the radios went down they were broadcasting local safe zones with the Georgia capital being one of them; on my travels it had become clear that almost -if not all- of these so called havens had failed in their claims of safety and protection. The route my father had originally penned led straight into Atlanta which at the time was still under control with a strong military presence, but adding in resent events and the fact that the place was now no doubt crawling with walkers made it a no go zone.

"Do you think it will?" The young teen asked, her slightly quivering voice betraying an otherwise calm facade. I glanced back at the dark haired girl momentarily, catching her gazing out of the window with her head resting against the glass pane; my niece had always been a very beautiful girl something she had inherited from her mother but the world we now lived in had started taking its toll. Her once healthy sun kissed skin was now dull and ashen looking almost as though the life had literally been sucked from it and as well as a substantial amount of weight she had also lost the spark from her chocolate brown orbs making my heart clench in despair...this isn't the life a young person like her should be living...this isn't a life any of us should be.

"I really hope so." Turning back to the empty highway once again I trained worn-out eyes on the open road ahead determined not to let my uncertainty and fears for the future show on my face...if only for Ashley sake.

**~#~#~#~#~**

With all the back roads left clear of any traffic it didn't take long at all too reach Atlanta. We made a quick pit stop so that I could take another look at the map in hopes of finding the safest -and shortest- possible way round, while breaking Ash took the time to scout the surrounding area using the lone set of binoculars from our supplies boxed up in the back; she felt it relevant to my task to point out that the main road leading into the city was almost completely blocked on the outbound side.

"Are all the people who own those cars dead?" Ashley asked quietly after gracefully climbing over into the passenger seat; the slim index finger of my right hand paused midway down one of the many red roads drawn on the map as the words of her question slowly sank in. It was entirely possible that not only were all of those people dead but everyone in the Georgia capital too, Ash and I could be two of only a handful of survivors left in the US...or even the world. This startling realization sent an icy chill down my spine which then continued throughout my entire body, that unsettling sensation was immediately followed by the sudden urge to empty what little was in my stomach.

"I don't really like to think about it." I finally answered, taking a deep breath to settle my suddenly buzzing nerves...and nausea. The car soon fell into an uncomfortable silence with the only sound coming from the dark haired teen beside me as she tapped her nails lightly against the inner side of the door, after five minutes of only that soft tapping echoing around inside the confined space I looked up from the newly edited map and turned to Ash. "Alright, so I've managed to find us a safe way around using only back roads so that we don't have to go anywhere near the main city. If the way ahead is clear then we should be in Greenville before dark, that way we can find a secure place to bed down for the night; in the morning we'll head to Fort Valley and then take interstate 75 all the way to the Florida border."

"How do you know that it's going to be any better there than it is here?"

"I don't...but what else can we do?" I tossed the crumpled map onto the dashboard, making sure that it landed the right way up so that the route was still visible. "The world has gone to hell and we're running low on supplies, our best option is to stick to the original plan and head to Camp Blanding." With a quick flick of the wrist the station wagon was brought back to life, an unhealthy cough spluttering loudly from the ancient engine.

"The only reason we're going there is because that's where Uncle Jason was last we heard from him." Ashley twisted around in the worn leather seat and pinned me with an anxious look. "Things have got real bad since then...what if he's de-"

"Don't." I stated firmly, steel blue eyes trained forward while small hands clenched tightly around the wheel. "All we've got left in the world besides each other is hope...it may be false, but it's all we have." The teen moved her dark orbs off of me and down to the set of hands joined together in her lap; guilt immediately started to build as I glanced over briefly to find the chocolate haired girl looking close to tears. Even before the outbreak Ashley and I had an extremely strong bond, my sister was still quiet the party girl after Ash's birth which left it down to me to look after the tiny tot; this was the main trend for most of the girls life with Lacey playing the part of best friend as to that of mother. It was very rare for me to lose my temper thanks to years working as a doctor where the patience of a saint was needed a lot of the time and although it may seem that nothing's happened you have to realise that never have I so much as once raised my voice to Ashley. Taking a deep steadying breath I reached out and placed a hand over my nieces clasped ones. "I'm sorry. Jason..Jaime..Sean..the rest of the people at the base, they could all be dead...I just can't think that way." Swallowing thickly, I ducked my head to hide the tears which threatened to fall. "I've tried to be strong Ashley I really have..but the thought of anymore of our family being gone is just too much to take." The car was quiet once again, or it would have been if the mass of machinery hidden under the hood wasn't churning like a chainsaw.

"We should probably get going if we want to be out of here by nightfall...it's getting late." Our eyes locked for a second and in that moment I could see that everything was forgiven and that we were back to normal (or as normal as things get nowadays); after a quick reassuring squeeze of Ashley's hand I shifted the station wagon into gear and pulled out of the secluded parking area and back onto the road.

**~#~#~#~#~**

From birth my parents had raised me to be a strong, open-minded, independent woman. They made sure I knew that I didn't need a man to be happy like so many others seemed to believe; some of the looks I used to get from people when they found out I was mid-thirties, single and childless...seriously you'd think I'd just told them that I was a freaking alien hell bent on world domination or something. A frustrated sigh slipped past my lips as I looked down with squinted eyes at the smoking object before me, we'd been driving for about an hour when the rust bucket finally packed in leaving the two of us stranded at the side of the road in the middle of a small patch of woodland; the only good thing about breaking down around here is that coming into contact with any walkers was incredibly unlucky as they tend to stick closer to the cities as opposed to more rural areas. It goes against every feminist bone in my body to admit this but I really wish there was a guy around right now because I could really use one.

"Can you fix it?" Blowing a strand of damp raven hair out of my face I pushed back from the busted engine and moved around to lean against the passenger side of the car. "I'll take that as a no."

"Something's wrong with the engine, it could be overheated or one of the little doohickeys could be broken I don't know." My head fell back hitting the roof with a soft thump. It might seem like a trivial matter seeing the current way of life but did this really have to happen in summer, I mean Jesus if the dead don't kill me than the damn heat sure as hell will.

"We're super screwed now right?" Ashley stated knowingly while leaning out of the open car window; I glanced down at her only to find brown eyes already trained on me.

"Understatement." Even with the heavenly shade provided by the surrounding trees the heat was still unbearably stifling. I'd already stripped off the thin khaki coloured shirt (now tied around my waist) which used to cover the dark green vest top I also wore, so unless I wanted to start wandering around barefoot and trouserless there was nothing left to take off. Cerulean eyes started to drift closed as a light breeze brushed softly against my heated skin, in that moment of silence a loud snap sounded clear as day from the nearby woodland; I was instantly on the alert with my eyes hurriedly surveying the surround area.

"Charlie?"

"Shhh." Ashley quietened immediately and then she too began looking around. Another crack emanated from within the trees but this time it was even closer, with the car out of commission the pair of us were going nowhere so the only option left was to find out what we were up against to see if there was any chance of making it out of here in one piece. "Pass me my gun." I whispered softly. Without making much noise the teen slowly scooted over on the front bench to retrieve the semi-automatic pistol hidden under the driver side seat, once back in her original position Ashley handed over the firearm.

"You're not going in there are you?"

"Haven't got much of choice Ash, we're sitting ducks." Thanks to my father's need to have all his children prepared for anything I had been handling guns of all shapes and sizes since before I'd even hit puberty. After a quick check of the magazine I slipped the pistol snuggly into the waistband at the back of my jeans; walkers are attracted to loud noises as well as the small of flesh so getting through this situation without firing a shot (if possible) was certainly a good idea. "I'll need the bat too." She gave a curt nod before turning round to snatch up the silver baseball bat from its place laying on the floor in the back. Rustling leaves off to the left caught my attention and almost immediately I had a tight grip on the handle of the gun still housed in the back of my pants, the area fell silent again but my nerves refused to settle.

"Here." Ashley murmured holding out the bat.

"Thanks." I took the metal object from her and grasped it tightly between my hands. "I want you to roll up the windows and lock all the doors...if anything comes out of those woods besides me get down and stay out of sight." She gave another quick nod before getting to work locking up the doors of the station wagon; I stayed put by the side of the car and watched silently for a moment -mentally noting the way Ashley's hands shook- once all the catches had been pushed down securing the vehicle as much as possible the dark haired girl returned to the front seat clasping her beat-up canvas backpack between trembling fingers.

"What if they find me?" The way her tiny voice cracked as she spoke broke my heart...compared to that friendly, bubbly, upbeat girl Ashley had been before all of this happened she was almost unrecognizable. "What if you don't come back?" I swallowed thickly as the dark brown eyes belonging to my niece speedily filled with tears. There was another rustle of leaves from behind causing me to cast a brief look into the trees, it was clear that whatever was making the noise from in the woods was getting closer and the time I had to find and deal with it before it found our main position was growing shorter by the minute. Straightening up and spinning back round I pinned the worried looking teen with a compelling look.

"Ashley, whatever happens I'll come back." Freeing up one of my hands from the bat I reached through the still open window and gently cuffed the soundlessly crying girl under the chin so that she was looking at me instead of the floor. "If things get real bad and you need help then make as loud a noise as possible, grab the gun grandpa gave you from in your bag and hunker down because if I hear you I'll be back in a second okay...nothing's going to happen to you honey, I promise." With nothing else left to say I offered a gently smile in hope of easing Ashley's fear if only slightly, she continued to watch me for a second and then after what felt like an eternity the teen returned the gesture her tears finally stilling. "There you go." She pulled her eyes from mine, clearly embarrassed at the water works previously displayed.

"Sorry."

"Don't be." With Ashley finally dealt with I turned my attention back to the more serious matter at hand. "I'm going to go check out where that noise is coming from alright, hopefully it's just an animal or something but we need to be sure." Taking a deep breath to steel my nerves I rounded on the spot to once again face the tall line of trees. "Close the window..and keep down until I get back." There was a low squeaking from the car as Ash quickly rolled up the glass screen; once I was certain the task had been completely fulfilled I started forward towards the woods, metal baseball bat gripped tightly between shaky palms. Like most people I had my fair share of phobias, for example: spiders, heights, flying (over open water)...clowns; but something that had never bother me until now was woodland even though it was normally always dark and creepy. Shining sapphire eyes shot around the vicinity a mile a minute never keeping on one spot for more than a few seconds, since entering the greenery the noise which had drawn me inside in the first place hadn't sounded once making me wonder if maybe it had just been a wild rabbit or something after all. Unfortunately that miniscule spark of hope was quickly extinguished when a loud crunch of a snapping twig echoed through the trees from somewhere close by; instinctively I froze to the spot, heart beating wildly within my chest. Okay so without doubt not a rabbit, could be a stray dog or perhaps even a deer? Another loud wooden crack sounded...and this time it was right behind me.

A harsh breath caught in my throat as the creator of the ever moving noise crept that little bit closer, making the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. So this was it, after weeks of fighting for mine and Ashley's lives I was going to meet my maker in the middle of a forest leaving the scared teenager hiding back in the car all alone with nobody there to protect her. The feel of the intruders close presence soaked straight through the material of my thin green vest and deep down into my skin, with the knowledge that this could be my last moment on Earth as a fully functioning human being I straighten up gripping the sturdy bat so tightly that every knuckle turned stark white. Well if this was how I was going to go out...I sure as hell wasn't going without a fight. In one swift movement I spun around, aluminium club held high ready to knock the head off the walker getting ready to take a big 'ol bite out of me; just as the bat was coming down for a hit a strong muscled arm shot out grabbing the end of the metal object before it could make contact and do any damage. What the hell? Since when did those walking corpses start fighting back? My eyes shot straight up and instantly locked with a set of stormy blue ones.

Stood at a little under six feet (giving him at least a good five/six inches on me) dressed in khaki trousers, a pair of large well worn work books and a sleeveless shirt which had more than likely been white at some point in its existence was a _living _breathing man; there was a mess of dark blonde/sandy brown hair atop the strangers head as well as an extremely intimidating crossbow slung over his shoulder. My heart began to slowly return to a somewhat normal rhythm with the undead threat now put out of mind for the time being due to the fact that the origin of the disturbance was standing right in front of me. The small clearing we currently occupied remained undisturbed as the two of us continued our silent battle of wills...we must have been there for a good five or ten minutes before the big guy begrudgingly decided to break the stalemate.

"This how you usually greet people lady?" A subtle southern accent laced his voice making it pretty clear that he was a local to these parts. The continued silence and wide eyes must have given off the wrong impression because a large furrow appeared across the tall mans brow as he looked down at me in confusion. "You slow or somethin'?" What! I was immediately on the defensive thanks to the insult, my muscles tightly coiled and eyes narrowed into thin slits.

"Are you rude or some-_thing_?" I replied tersely, putting added emphasis on the end of the last word. The strangers blue orbs darkened in irritation at my tone and he took a slight step forward which only increased his towering presence over me; not wanting to show even an ounce of the fear I was currently feeling I carried on staring up at him with fierce determination. "And for your information I thought you were a walker."

"Do I look like one of those flesh eatin' bastards to you?" He asked indignantly and due to his tone I made it a point to look him over closely before finally answering.

"No...but you smell like one." An evil smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he scowled down at me.

"Well you ain't exactly sunshine and daises yourself there sweetheart." With one hard tug the baseball bat was removed from the still nameless strangers grip; he eyed me with silent suspicion as I took a few steps back to regain some of my lost personal space. God! The day just keeps getting better and better: firstly the car breaks down in the middle of nowhere leaving Ashley and I stranded in an unsafe area, secondly weird noises start sounding from in the woods leading me to believe the undead were close by and then thirdly it turns out said undead was actually an ill-mannered redneck with a knack for sneaking around. Turning on the spot with the metal bat hanging limply at my side -eyes quickly locking with the man's own once more- I was just about to speak when a high pitch whistle echoed through the trees scaring the surrounding birdlife making them fly off hurriedly from their homes; both of us turned at the sound and after noting the direction my heart clenched painfully causing a soft gasp to slip past my dry lips.

"Ashley." Without a second thought I sprinted forward like a flash, back towards the road where the car was parked. There was a slight commotion behind me as the southern stranger began to give chase.

"Hey!" The thin wiry braches of the smaller trees wiped against the bare skin of my upper arms, stinging like hell and more than likely cutting through to draw blood. "Get back here!" His calls fell on deaf ears as there was only one thing on my mind at present and that was to get back to Ashley as quickly as possible. The trees were beginning to thin out a little so I knew I was close, tapping into the last of my reserves gave my aching legs just that little bit of motivation needed to drive forward faster and in less than I minute I finally burst free from the green prison and out onto the road... ...right into the path of a rifle wielding madman.


	2. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer****: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

"_Hey!" The thin wiry braches of the smaller trees wiped against the bare skin of my upper arms, stinging like hell and more than likely cutting through to draw blood. "Get back here!" His calls fell on deaf ears as there was only one thing on my mind at present and that was to get back to Ashley as quickly as possible. The trees were beginning to thin out a little so I knew I was close, tapping into the last of my reserves gave my aching legs just that little bit of motivation needed to drive forward faster and in less than I minute I finally burst free from the green prison and out onto the road...right into the path of a rifle wielding madman._

He was the same height as the other guy I had come across and if you looked close enough there was a slight similarity also, the major differences between them being that this one was probably in his fifties as opposed to the other who was mid/late thirties? The rifleman's hair was cropped short -almost a buzz cut- and grey in colour; although the heat was almost unbearable clad in as little as possible this guy didn't seem to care as he was dressed in all black with a heavy leather hunting vest covering his top half. There was a sudden rustle behind me announcing the arrival of mystery man number one, the elder of the two slowly lowered his weapon once the other stepped down onto the empty road stopping close beside me; a slimy smile spread across the gunman's face as he observed both of us with cold emotionless blue eyes.

"Gettin' rusty there brother. You know the worlds endin' when a woman can give you the slip." Brother? You have got to be kidding me, it's like I've stumbled out of a George A Romero flick and right into The Hills Have Eyes. Glancing over to the car I found it exactly as it had been before leaving, obviously the guy hadn't had time to get to close otherwise he would have found the brown haired teen huddled in the front seat. "This your car?" The older one asked after shouldering his rifle.

"Yes." He eyed me a second longer before moving closer to the stationary vehicle. I watched silently -my heart accelerating at an alarming rate- the vibe I got off this guy was different than the one I got from his brother...and not in a good way. With Ashley's safety my primary concern I did something that given the current situation probably wasn't my smartest idea. Dropping the bat to the ground I swiftly reached round to the back of my jeans and pulled out the pistol, immediately levelling it on the man stood opposite. "Stay away from there." He cast me a fleeting look with a smirk clear as day on his weathered face.

"And if I don't?" A metallic click sounded behind me and for the second time in less than half an hour the presence of another body could be felt close to mine. "Looks to me like you ain't in any position to be givin' orders." I swallowed thickly but didn't waver, my blatant act of defiance didn't seem to amuse either brother and that was made undoubtedly clear by the feel of the younger's crossbow digging painfully into my back.

"Drop it." He pushed the bow forward making me stumble. "I don't what to have to shoot you lady, but I will." We remained in a three-way deadlock for a few moments more until finally I gave in and let the gun fall to the floor, where it landed next to the bat with a dull thud.

"Good girl." I glared icily at the greying brother which only made him laugh, he veered off the path towards the car and started over towards me. "See, now we don't have to hurt ya."

"No...but I might have to hurt you." My eyes widened at the surprise addition of another voice. Ashley stood behind the older man with her own pistol in hand the weapon pointing right at him, much like his brother was doing to me; somehow the teen must have managed to quietly sneak out of the back of the car while the boys and I were facing off. "Make him get away from her right now or your dead mister." Nobody moved even the slightest inch making the dark haired girl shuffle nervously on the spot. "I'm serious."

"Don't sound it." I watched -fear bubbling in my gut- as the leather wearing man turned around, his eyes coming to rest on Ashley for the first time. "Well hell, look at you." He let out a low whistle and watched her closely (a little too closely for my liking) before taking a step forward, my feet went to follow but I was held back by a strong hand gripping my shoulder. "If you ain't just the cutest little thing." What transpired next happened in the blink of an eye; before I could try to stop it he had rounded on Ash grabbing a large calloused hand around the slim wrist of her right arm. "Dumb though." A pained scream slipped through her lips when he jerked her hand back roughly causing the gun to be released; I fought against the other mans hold trying with all my might to get over to her but he was just too strong. With a sick smile on his face he twisted my nieces arm around which again drew a loud whimper, causally he moved behind her adding extra pressure to the already bent limb. "Next time turn the safety off before you point it at someone sweetness."

"Get your filthy hands off her."

"Make me." With renewed vigour I began struggling again, hoping that the erratic jerky movements would help to loosen my captors grip enough to break free; my determination only increased when I saw that disgusting pig of a man lean down to nuzzle the side of Ashley's neck causing tears to spill from her eyes.

"Merle."

"What!" He snapped angrily, casting his younger brother an irate look. "You got yours Daryl, s'only fair I get mine." The feeling of complete an utter failure washed over me as he turned back and continued to run his hands over her youthful skin, only increasing the speed of the water running from the girls sad brown orbs.

"Let her go right now you sick bastard!"

"What in God's name is going on here?" My body was turned as Daryl (the younger brother) moved round to face the newcomer who had arrived in just the nick of time; a little further down the abandoned stretch of road stood mine and Ashley's saviours. Ocean blue eyes scanned the trio curiously: in the center of the group was a silver haired man -probably late fifties or possibly early 60's- aside from the rather impressive rifle he carried the guy looked normal enough...but compared to these two hicks who wouldn't, to his left was a bat wielding male with a couple of days worth of stubble on his face and dark hair mostly hidden by a dirty looking cap. Lastly was the sole female of the small team, she had crystal blue eyes and long blonde hair pulled up in a messy ponytail; there was a small pistol gripped tightly in her hand showing folks she's not as innocent as you'd think. Our eyes connected for a brief moment which was all the time needed to convey to her the fear currently flowing though my veins.

"Is everything okay?" Before I could answer her question Merle spoke up for me, his voice clearly showing the anger he felt at being interrupted.

"Everythin's fine." He readjusted the grip he had on Ash's arm making her gasp again in pain. The hushed cry caught the attention of everyone in the new group so the sneering man decided to change the subject in hopes of getting their eyes off her. "What you doin' out here anyways?"

"I saw their car from the RV, when it didn't exit the other side of the road we decided to come and see if they needed any help." The eldest of the three stated his eyes never moving from the scene before him. "Good job too...let the girl go Dixon."

"You gonna make me old timer?"

"Even with your brother here Merle you're clearly out gunned." He removed the rifle from his shoulder and loading it, making it clear he wasn't messing around; both his comrades also readied themselves and their weapons encase in was needed. "Now, just move away from her and don't do something you'll later regret." The area fell so deathly silent that it was a wonder nobody could hear the thumping of my pounding heart, at some point during the last few minutes Daryl had removed his hands from my body but with everything that was happening I hadn't even noticed. Several long, agonising moments passed before the elder Dixon brother finally made a move; after a loud feral growl rumbled up from deep within his chest he pushed Ashley away roughly causing her to fall heavily to the floor.

"Ain't worth the hassle anyway." Merle cast the fallen teenage one last distasteful look before turning and stalking away. I had silently watched the scene play out -anger slowly building up inside- but after witnessing the way that vile man ran his eyes over my nieces crumpled form upon the ground what little composure I had snapped; seeing red I surged forward with every intention of knocking the heartless bastard to the floor and then beating the shit out of him with my bare hands. Slim fingers were an inch away from grasping the back of his filthy vest when a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around my waist.

"Get off me! He's can't be allowed to get away with treating her like that." I kicked and bucked wildly against the vice grip but only succeeded in getting the owner to tighten their hold; five sets of eyes -including the ones belonging to the man I wanted nothing more than to beat to death- locked in on me as I continued squirming around to get free.

"Let it go." Daryl murmured, his hot breath brushing lightly against my ear. "It won't help...trust me." At the hushed words my body began to still almost of its own accord; Merle watched us from his reclined position against one of the many trees lining the road a sinister smirk firmly set on his lips.

"That's it brother...show the bitch whose boss." I scowled at the man but he just blew me a mocking kiss in reply before pulling out a packet of wrinkled cigarettes; the trio had silently moved closer and were now standing only a little ways off to the side of us. Since I had given up trying to escape the younger Dixon must have decided that it was safe to let me free, he slowly removed his arms from around my midsection and then proceeded to walk over towards the elder sibling who was currently puffing away on a death stick (or maybe something less legal) without a care in the world. A quiet sniffle came from the ground and my ocean blue eyes immediately shot to the teen curled up against the front bumper, she was looking up at me with dark watery eyes and it was plain to see (and understandably so) that the young girl was terrified. Moving forward quickly I dropped to my knees beside her, glancing down my observant orbs zeroed in on the wrist the hillbilly had manhandled and noticed the already bruising skin; there was also slight swelling and since the incident had happened only a little while ago it was clear by the damage just how violent he had been.

"Ashley?" She didn't reply and just continued to look at me with thin shiny tracks lining her cheeks. "Ash?" Suddenly a loud sob escaped the young girl and she collapsed into my open arms, her face burrowed into the side of my neck muffling the heartbreaking sound; I wrapped the shaking teen in a strong embrace and softly began stroking the messy brown hair atop her head in hope of soothing the rasping crys. "I'm sorry honey...I'm so, so sorry." The only sound that could be heard for the next few minutes was that of Ash's weeping, it took a good while before she finally calmed enough to speek.

"It wasn't your fault." She whispered into my shoulder once her tears had slowed. "You did everything you could."

"Not enough." I gritted out, eyes flaming once finding their target. "If he touches you again I swear to god I'll kill him." Her breath hitched slightly at the mention of that pig and I instantly regretted voicing my promise. A low cough sounded from behind us, I tore my gaze from the smug prick opposite and turned towards the direction of the noise; the eldest of the three was the the one who had cleared his throat and after gaining my attention a small kind smile spread across his lips.

"Are you two ladies alright?" A sarcastic comment was on the tip of my tongue but it was quickly swallowed down; the blonde woman stood to his right rolled her blue eyes and cast him a disbelieving look.

"What do you think Dale? They've just been assaulted and held at gunpoint by a couple of mindless cavemen." She slipped her gun into the green messenger bag hung over her shoulder before looking back at the older man. "I knew something was going to happen, we should never have let them go out alone."

"They may not be the easiest people to get along with but they know what they're doing." Dale briefly glanced over to the pair in question. "We need food Andrea...and those two know how to get it." Ashley (who had quietened considerably and stopped shaking) and I slowly got to our feet while the pair talked but once upright again the group returned their attention to us. "I'm sorry for the way you both were treated...Daryl and Merle can be-"

"Assholes." My snide remark gained a laugh from Andrea, a slight lip quirk from the dark haired man and a smile from the older guy.

"I was going to say difficult, but that works too." He chuckled softly while wiping a hand across his brow; the silver haired gentleman shared a silent look with the still nameless man before speaking. "It seems your having a little car trouble, do you want us to take a look and see if there's anything we can do."

"Please, it's not going anywhere otherwise."

"Then it's just as well I brought a mechanic with me." I kept an arm securely wrapped around the teens shoulders as the two men moved forward to look under the hood of the station wagon; the younger of the duo stepped up to the front and lifted the wood panelled cover with a grating creak to expose the mass of machinery underneath. Ashley and I shuffled over a little more to allow the pair some extra working space, she huddled right into my side her hands tightly fisting the fabric of my top.

"Here, you dropped these." Looking up I found Andrea stood before us holding out my pistol in one hand and the baseball bat in the other, she smiled softly which I politely returned before reaching out for the firearm.

"Thank you." After returning the handgun to its rightful place in the waistband of my jeans I took the bat from her and handed it to dark haired girl beside me, Ash released the death grip she had on my shirt and grasped the metal club between her hands. I slipped past the teen quickly to grab the weapon which still lay on the road, once safely tucked behind me next to its friend I crossed the short distance back to my niece who was silently eyeing the blonde.

"My names Andrea." She stated, smiling kindly at Ash. "That's Dale and the one in the hat is Jim." Both men looked up momentarily at the mention of their names and gave slight nods in greeting once they noticed us looking.

"I'm Charlotte...and this is Ashley." The younger girl remained silent beside me but I could see that she was still watching Andrea closely.

"It's nice to meet you both, putting aside the circumstances of course." Her bright blue orbs shot momentarily over to the two brothers before moving back to Ash and I; at finding us looking she once again smiled warmly in hopes of reassurance. The day's events were finally starting to hit me and exhaustion was quickly beginning to set in, all I want is to get back on the road and to Greenville as soon as possible so that then we can find a relatively safe place to stay and hopefully get some sleep before starting the cycle again tomorrow at sunup. "So where are you headed, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Camp Blanding."

"Florida?"

"Yeah, my brother Jason is a Major in the army. He took his wife and son there before things got really bad, somehow he managed to get a call out telling us to head to the base where we'd be safe." I paused for a second to clear my throat and grab a steadying breath before continuing. "That was a couple of weeks ago...we haven't heard anything since."

"And your still going?" She asked softly.

"We have to, they're the only family Ashley and I have left." Our gazes locked and I could clearly see in that moment that she too still had people she cared greatly for lost out there in the cruel world we now lived in. Just when I was about to speak again Jim walked over, wiping his grease covered hands on the back of his equally dirty jeans; Dale followed close behind and wore a solemn look on his face making it pretty obvious that whatever I was about to hear wouldn't be good. "Everything okay?" Ash stepped closer to me as the men neared so I wrapped an arm around her once more to show her she was safe.

"Not especially." He replied while adjusting the cap shading his head from the sun. "There were a couple of loose wires which I managed to fix and that finally got it started again...but the engines a mess, it needs a complete rebuild if you plan to keep travelling in it." A low frustrated groan escaped me as his words slowly sank in. This is great, just when I thought my day couldn't get any worst.

"Will it get us to Greenville at least?" I asked hopefully. Jim shared a look with the other two members of his group before ultimately shaking his head.

"You'd be lucky to get a couple of miles as is, there's no way it could make it that far." My heart dropped down into my stomach at this revelation and I began to find it hard to breathe. What do we do now? How will we get to Jason? Ashley must have sensed my panic because she slowly started rubbing circles on my back while whispering words of reassurance. This isn't right I'm supposed to be the strong one, I'm supposed to be looking after her not the other way around; this beautiful young girl shouldn't have to be coddling me like some newborn baby. I sucked in a large ragged breath which gained the attention of all those around; Ash's dark eyes instantly found mine and you could easily see she was worried after my little freak out so I gave the teen a small smile and a shoulder squeeze before returning my attention to the trio of survivors.

"Is there no way to jerry-rig it so that we could make it to the next town?" Jim shook his head silently as both Dale and Andrea sent me looks of sympathy. "God dammit!" I released Ashley suddenly and spun around, it took no time at all to cross the small distance between me and the car and once close enough I slammed fisted hands down onto the hood creating a loud bang. "Useless piece of crap." I managed to strike down hard a couple more time -which helped lessen my pent up aggression considerably- before Dale decided to intervene.

"I don't want to be rude Miss, but that's not going to help the situation."

"I know...but it makes me feel better." My little fit had once again gained a crowd but to be perfectly honest I couldn't give a shit. Ash watched me with a stunned expression plastered across her youthful face, sighing softly I looked down at the now dented car hood for a split second (deep regret rising thanks to the sudden public outburst of anger) before turning around with arms held out offering my niece the hug that she looked so desperate for. "Come here." Ashley didn't need asking twice and ran forward right away.

"Where are we going to go?" She whispered shakily.

"I don't know honey." I tightened my hold around the young girl, bringing her that tiny bit closer. "But whatever happens we'll be together no matter what." She nodded silently and I leant down to press a kiss atop her head before moving to rest my cheek against it. As we stood there holding each other the question she had posed continued to run through my mind...where would we go? We've got no transportation, meagre supplies that wouldn't last more than a few weeks and over three hundred and fifty miles still to travel; it had been a long shot in the beginning but now...it was next to impossible.

"Come with us." My head snapped up at Andrea's words. "We're camped not too far from here in an abandoned quarry, your car might not be able to drive all the way to Greenville but it could definitely make it back to our camp...right?" For confirmation the blonde turned to look at Jim. The quiet mechanic didn't answer straight away, obviously trying to mentally figure out if my rust bucket of an automobile could handle the trip; after a few minutes he finally nodded. "There are only a handful of us so room for the both of you won't be a problem...and honestly the more people we have the better, especially with the likes of Merle Dixon around." Her blue eyes flicked over to said man for about a millisecond before returning to me. The offer of a place to stay was extremely welcome and I for one could definitely use a good night's rest, the only thing holding me back from expecting her offer however was the matter of safety...both from the living and the dead.

"What about walkers? Is it safe?"

"We've only been there for about a week, but haven't seen any so far." Nodding wordlessly, the internal battle continued to wage; a look of intense concentration was written across my face which must have caught the eldest of the groups attention.

"They seem to be keeping near to the city." Dale added.

"Sticking close to the major food source." I sighed softly before moving position so that Ashley was now at my side instead of hugged to my chest. "Maybe they're not as stupid as people think."

"Those stinkin' lumps of flesh ain't no smarter than a stray mutt looking for some chow." My guard was instantly back up and on high alert at the sound of the elder Dixon's gravelly voice. I turned slightly and watched with barely veiled disgust as Merle threw the remainder of the cigarette he had been smoking to the floor, stubbing out the still smouldering tab with the heel of his worn boot.

"That a fact?" I asked, fixing the rough redneck with a challenging look.

"Damn straight."

"Guess that puts them just a little higher than you in an IQ table then doesn't it." That shit eating grin he'd been wearing since our first meeting was well and truly wiped off at my comment and replaced with an cold scowl; due to his sudden change in demeanour I shifted Ashley around so that she was now behind me and shielded from view.

"Better watch your mouth there girly, before it starts getting you in trouble." He ran his eyes over me crudely before making a show of adjusted the rifle hung over his shoulder; Daryl watched silently from the shadows but you could see by the tenseness of his muscles that he was ready for action if things turned bad.

"That a threat?"

"It's a promise." I glared warningly at the smirking man and had to fight hard to rein in the urge to reach around for my gun. The anger must have been apparent my face as Merle's grin widened and a cruel laugh ripped from his chest, that was the final straw and just when I was about to move a small hand lightly touched my arm; looking back my eyes locked with those of the frightened teen. Ashley must have realised what I was about to do because the young girls dark orbs flicked to the pistol briefly before returning to my face; silently she shook her head and then slowly lowered her hand.

"Alright that's enough." Dale had finally hit breaking point as he suddenly stepped into the small stretch of road separating Merle and I, partially blocking the smug hick from my line of sight in the process. "I understand that the two of you didn't get off to the best start-," I scoffed indignantly at this but the older man was undeterred and continued on. "-but we don't have the luxury to pick and choose our friends and allies anymore. The world we once knew is gone and those of us that have managed to survive need to stick together...for humanities survival if not just our own." His soulful eyes bore straight into mine and down to my aching heart; there was something in those dark brown depths that spoke to me on a kindred level, causing the anger that Merle had helped create fade away. This man had battled heartache and pain that most could have never imagined until this infection arrived...he had fought through that earlier struggle and won, this could clearly be seen if you ever got the chance to look deep into his eyes like I was doing now. Dale wasn't going to let the disease currently reaping the earth beat him and neither was I, if safety from this meant rooming near an unstable individual then so be it...Merle had just better be ready to face the barrel of a shotgun if he even so much as thinks of trying any of that shit again.

"We better get moving then, before it gets dark." Casting a discreet look around the group I noted the slight hitch to the elder mans lips at my answer, obviously pleased with the outcome his little speech had produced. Dale must have felt my curious gaze because he glanced up and gave me a slight nod before gesturing to the others to start towards the car; turning slowly I slipped an arm around Ashley's shoulders and followed behind the trio who had now reached the old station wagon. "Since I don't know the way it might be better if one of you drives." Jim stepped up to the task and moved over to the driver side door.

"Bout damn time. Thought I was gonna start plantin' roots if either of you started up your jabberin' again." I inwardly groaned at the sound of Merle's voice, he had somehow managed to keep his trap shut while Dale spoke but it seemed that little miracle had come to an end. The elder Dixon roughly brushed past Ash and I on his way to the still stationary vehicle making me stumble somewhat; Daryl trailed close behind his brother and upon seeing me wobble an arm quickly (and subtly) reached out to steady me, once stable he moved on without so much as glancing down. "Move it, I'm drivin'."

"Like hell. You're not getting in my car." The words flew from my mouth before I could stop them. All eyes were on me thanks to the outburst and it was clear by the look on his face that Merle wasn't happy; honestly I couldn't care less how he felt because it was one thing to reluctantly agree to living in the same place as that sick pervert but for me to willingly force my frail and freighted teenage niece into being confined to such a tiny space with the man who tried to molest her so close to when it had actually happened was just unacceptable.

"Really?" Merle rounded swiftly so that now he was right in front of me. After shielding the dark haired girl behind me once again I straightened up fully to show that his macho, tough guy bullshit didn't scare me...even though it may have done just a little. "And why's that?"

"You know perfectly well why." Cold blue eyes flicked down and over my shoulder to Ashley's partially hidden form; white hot anger returned with a vengeance and the fingers of my right hand began to twitch involuntary as they ached to curl up and repeatedly slam into his smug face until it was unrecognisable. "I'd rather give myself over to a horde of starving walkers then let you anywhere near her again you revolting waste of space." Merle's eyes narrowed momentarily at the insult but after a minute or so that chilling grin returned to his face, making me feel increasingly nervous.

"It can be arranged." Taking a small step forward the tall man bent down so that his stubble ridden face was level with mine. "Now that..was a threat." A stench which could rival that of a decaying corpse wafted up my nostrils as the hick spoke and it took a lot to keep the grimace off my features. The others continued to wordlessly watch, their eyes locked on the more volatile of the duo; like before we stayed in a silent standoff but unlike previously it was Daryl that broke it not Dale.

"Come on Merle, you said so yourself they ain't worth the hassle." The younger Dixon moved up next to his brother, showing that he was still very much on his side even though he was trying to defuse the situation. "Let's just walk back, it ain't far...and anyway it's still light out and we got dinner to catch."

"No." A deep frown appeared across Daryl's brow as he looked at his brother in confusion. "I left a rabbit hung in tree a little ways back, it should do us for tonight." The older hunter finally removed his gaze from Ashley and I before making a move to turn back towards the woods from which he originally came. "They can starve." And with those words he cast the group one last disdainful look before disappearing into the trees. The tense atmosphere around us immediately lessened due to the elder Dixons departure and for the first time since finding these new survivors I could breath easily; my tired blue orbs strayed away from the point in the shrubbery where Merle had gone and trailed over to the still visible form of Daryl who had yet to follow his sibling into the undergrowth. Our eyes met once more -mirroring the way they had at the first meeting- we stayed like that for several moments before the sandy haired man broke the intense gaze by clearing his throat and looking at the ground.

"You should go." He stated this to the whole group but I caught him glance at me briefly while doing so. "We'll be back by sundown." Daryl adjusted his crossbow quickly and darted into the woods without another word; a slight rustling of leaves and few snapping twigs could be heard for a minute or so before the area was silent once again. I continued to watch the space he had vanished through as my mind slowly began to process what happened over the last hour: Ash and I had gone from women with a plan to damsels in distress in one afternoon, our whole reason from being here was finished as there was no way of progressing further without becoming lunch for the hungry undead; we were completely screwed and stranded miles away from our destination and to top it off the group of survivors we happened to have lucked upon unfortunately travelled with a mean gun toting hillbilly who I could officially say was already an enemy...really, could life get any worse.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>**: Firstly I would like to give a huge thanks you to those that reviewed it really does mean a lot. Secondly I thought I'd quickly tell you about my updating, so far I have a couple more chapters written but after they have been posted uploading new material will probably be a weekly or sometimes fortnightly event depending on how quickly I get stuff done...if things take longer don't worry it just means that my brain is running a little slower than usual. **


	3. Chapter Three

**Disclaimer****: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

Like Andrea had said the camp wasn't that far of a ways so it didn't take too long to get there, even with Jim's overly cautious grandma driving. The settlement sat atop a hill overlooking a stunning body of enclosed water, the site wasn't anything overly special but then again I wasn't expecting it to be; along with the large RV parked near the edge of the overhang there were several other cars scattered around as well as a beautiful black motorcycle. Right in the middle of everything was the main fire which burned lowly so not to attract any unwanted attention, tents of varying sizes dotted the area most of them sheltered in the trees that surrounded the hurriedly constructed refugee camp. The place may not be the Ritz but it was definitely a welcomed sight for a pair of weary travellers like Ashley and myself who hadn't stayed in the same place for more than a few hours since this nightmare had begun. Another thing the blonde lady hadn't been lying about was the number of people currently living there; after the still clunking station wagon had been safely parked up behind the winnebago (which belonged to Dale) my niece and I were introduced to the whole group which was made up of just nineteen other survivors:

Dale Horvath ~ Jim the mechanic ~ Andrea and her younger sister Amy ~ Ed, Carol and Sophia Peletier ~ Jacqui ~ T-Dog ~ Morales and Miranda with their children Eliza and Louis ~ Glenn ~ Carlos, Brooke and Lisa (graduate students from Georgia State) and of course Merle and Daryl Dixon...how could I possible forget those two huh.

The reality of the situation hit me like a 18-wheeler at seeing just how few people had managed to escape Atlanta with their lives. How can something invisible to the human eye cause the world such pain and utter chaos? Once all the pleasantries were out of the way the campers went back to doing whatever they were doing before we arrived which consisted mostly of washing clothes and starting dinner...basically just your everyday chores.

Andrea and her sister hung back to help Ash and I settle in which was very kind. Amy was a lot like the elder blonde when it came to looks but you could tell that personality wise she was the more bubbly and outgoing of the two, she immediately went to Ashley's side and started to befriend her which was met with a mixed response as the dark haired teen still seemed completely shell shocked and with all that had happened it was wholly understandable. Seeing as they had offered us a place to stay I thought it only right to share the last of our food supplies with them. It wasn't anything much just a cardboard box ¾ full of a range of canned goods, several army ration packs, some freeze-dried meals and a half empty packet of power bars; with storage space being an issue we decided it best that the lot stayed in the back of my car for the moment until somewhere more permanent could be found to house the food. The two sisters finally left us alone to relax just as the sun was setting; don't get me wrong their company was very welcome it's just that after so long of it being only the two of us adjusting to the presence of other people was going to take some time.

I breathed a quiet sigh of relief at the two beautiful blondes departure because it gave me the time to get a better look at Ashley's injured wrist which was something I had wanted to do since we got here. Her skin had bruised some more since I'd last seen it and the area around the joint had visibly swollen, there wasn't a great deal I could do so after checking to make sure the wrist wasn't broken I grabbed a cold compress (from inside the large medical kit I had managed to swipe from the hospital I used to work at before the disease hit) and instructed the young girl to ice the offending area until the swelling went down; Ash didn't put up any fuss and after dry swallowing the two pain pills I gave her she took the mini instant ice pack and settled down across the back seat in hopes of getting some rest.

Since it was getting dark I thought it best to leave setting up our tent until tomorrow so for one last night it was sleeping in the car for us two Ellis girls. From my position sat in the flat tail end of the old Volkswagen I silently watched the other camp members hunker down close around the fire for a dinner of chicken noodle soup (Lipton® style), Dale come over just before they settled down and asked if the two of us wanted to join but I politely declined and gesturing to the back seat where Ashley silently slept; the kind man nodded understandingly before leaving without another word. The sun was slowly setting casting a murky golden glow over the surrounding area; leaning back I let out a soft sigh as weary blue eyes drifted closed it had been an extremely long, draining day and my sore battered body was certainly feeling it. While shuffling around to get more comfortable in the cramped trunk my right arm brushed against one of the supply boxes earning a pained hiss from my lips at the contact, glancing down I instantly discovered the reason for my discomfort; sprinkled across the skin of my upper arm were a number of scrapes and a couple of shallow scratches. At seeing the cuts my mind flashed back to Daryl and I's earlier chase through the woodland...huh looks like I was right, those branches had done some damage; checking the other arm I found that it was just as cut up if not worst. Turning I reached into the closest cardboard box and pulled out the blue medical bag which I'd previously used to help with Ashley, after unzipping the case and unfolding the inner compartments I quickly found the necessary equipment before pushing the bag aside to give myself a little more room to manoeuvre. After grabbing a small box of antiseptic wipes from one of the pockets I got started cleaning up the minor abrasions, there were thin trails of dried blood running down from some of the larger cuts but they were easily washed away with one swipe of the white cloth. However many times you experience it, the harsh sting which always accompanies any antiseptic clean over is something you never truly get used too.

I had just started on my left arm when a loud -and unfortunately familiar- whistle sounded from the trees across the clearing gaining the whole camps attention as well as my own; there was a slight rustle followed by an audible curse before a body finally emerged from the greenery. Merle sauntered out casually puffing away on another cigarette with the large hunting rifle hanging loosely over his shoulder, the younger Dixon brother wasn't far behind and emerged seconds later carrying a couple of dead rabbits in one hand and his crossbow in the other; the elder of the two briefly glanced over to where I sat in the back of the parked up station wagon before turning his cold eyes to the group surround the fire.

"Well, well." He pulled the cancer stick from between his lips and blew out a long stream of foul smelling smoke. "Looks like ya'll started dinner without us." The band of survivors who had previously been enjoying a nice meal (before that dumbass hillbilly rudely interrupted) stopped eating and just watched silently as Merle stalked further into camp. "Now that just ain't polite."

"Neither is telling them that they can starve." Deep down I knew that staying quiet would probably have been for the best but there was just something so infuriating about Merle Dixon that made it impossible to do so. Narrowed blue orbs sharply flicked away from the campfire and over to me, a flash of pure anger burning deep in their depths making it clear that the volatile man wasn't at all happy with my interruption.

"Ain't I told you to watch your mouth once already today."

"Yeah well I don't usually go around listening to people whose brains are smaller than a peanut." I finished wiping away the remnants of the crusted blood from my arm before wrapping the used pad back up in its packet and placing it into the black plastic bag Ash and I used for trash. While I was doing this Merle's anger continued to build until suddenly he threw the end of his smoke into the oranges flames and stormed forwards, several of the larger men in the group (including Daryl) instantly stood ready encase things turned ugly and I needed back-up.

"You really like riling me, don't ya bitch?"

"Honestly...I like nothing about you."

"That so?" I nodded curtly but said nothing which only served to piss him off some more. Merle stepped closer and was now dangerously invading my personal space, when he leant forward my first response was to shrink back and away from the possible threat but that would have shown the sick hick that he bothered me so instead I did the complete opposite and remained as still as a statue with a determined expression plastered across my face. "Guess you'll be takin' that walk we talked about before a little earlier than expected." His foul breath once again permeated my senses, this time it was just too much and I had to turn my head away. "Don't worry though..." Dread slowly began to fill every pour of my body as Merle's eyes flicked over my shoulder, zeroing in on Ashley's sleeping form almost instantly. "I'll take _real_ good care of your little friend once you're gone."

"If you ever touch her again...I won't hesitate in killing you." Pushing myself up and out of the back of the car I pinned the man before me with a look of absolute hatred. "Do you hear me?"

"Oh I hear ya." The elder Dixon straightened up to his full height, adjusting the strap of the rifle draped over his shoulder while doing so. "Don't mean I'll listen." He cast the back of the station wagon one last lingering look before turning and starting towards the lone tent pitched in the trees next to the motorbike and dusty blue and white pick-up. "Hurry your ass up Daryl, I'm hungry." I watched as the lighter haired brother silently passed by following in his siblings footsteps, our similarly shaded eyes met for a brief moment but once Daryl realized want he was doing he pulled his blue orbs away and continued after Merle who was already comfortably settled outside of the tent around a small fire he'd just constructed.

**~#~#~#~#~**

Following my clash with Merle the rest of the evening went by relatively smoothly; while the other members in camp finished dinner and chatted contently with each other the Dixon brothers just kept to themselves eating their meal of stewed rabbit and tinned vegetables in silence. The sun had been set for several hours by the time everyone had finally called it a night and retired to their respective shelters; for the safely of all the people living in the makeshift shanty town there was a watchman (or woman) stationed throughout the entire night, those able and willing took turns atop the RV keeping an eye out for any stray walkers wondering the area. As it was both mine and Ashley's first night in camp we were given a reprieve from the nightly duty, but to show I could pull my own weigh I made the group aware that in the future I'd be more than willing to take a shift or two if it helped take the strain off others; they all smiled kindly and said they'd take that into consideration before finally telling me to hush up and get some rest...that was about an hour ago and as of yet I still hadn't managed to get any sleep. Sighing softly -as to not wake Ashley- I flipped over onto my back eliciting a low groan from the padded front bench I currently lounged upon, sleeping in the car isn't fun at the best of times but adding insomnia into the mix is just plain torture; glancing at the mechanical clock set in the dashboard I watched silently as the minute slider flicked over making the time now 00:22. The sun would once again be gracing the sky with its presence in six short hours and if I couldn't catch some zees before then I'd be about as useful as a corpse come tomorrow morning. Exhaling loudly in frustration I pushed myself up into a sitting position and spun around reaching down to the floor of the passenger side I snatched up my black biker boots and quickly pulled them on, once finished I slipped into the shirt I'd discarded earlier before silently climbing out of the vehicle. There was a slight chill to the Georgia night air and that was quite a shock to me given the heat of the day, the entire camp was shrouded in darkness save the light glow still emanating from the main fire which had been left to burn out naturally.

"Going somewhere?" A soft voice called from above. My blue orbs trailed up the side of the large winnebago until they met with a pair of dark brown ones (which looked almost black in the low light) belonging to the young Asian guy named Glenn whom I'd been introduced to earlier. He was perched comfortably on the edge of the RV's roof with his skinny legs hung over the side and a thin fleece blanket wrapped round his shoulders, what looked to be Dale's rifle lay idly beside him along with a small torch and a half empty bottle of water.

"Not right now." I replied, my voice just as quiet as his had been. "Can't sleep."

"Me either." The dark eyed kid joked lamely causing a rare smile to spread across my lips, walking forward I rounded the front of the car and took a seat on the hood. A frosty breeze blew in from the reservoir below and I suddenly cursed myself for not grabbing a jacket before getting out, Glenn shuffled around a little on the spot while pulling the throw tighter around his slight form. "So, sleep deprivation aside...how are you doing?"

"About as well as can be expected." Glancing back into the car through the windscreen I watched silently as Ashley slept soundly across the backseat, before trying to get some sleep of my own I made sure to pull a comforter over the snoozing teen so that she didn't get too cold. "What about you?" I asked curiously while turning back to face the young man.

"I'm adjusting." He blew out a long breath and looked up at the midnight blue sky scattered with twinkling stars. "Not much else you can do though right." After giving a nod of understanding I let my eyes drop to the floor as a comfortable silence descended over the pair of us, Glenn didn't seem to mind the quiet and just went back to his star gazing. Considering the circumstances which had led us all to be here the atmosphere in camp that evening had been surprising calm...maybe even peaceful. With one final faint sigh I removed myself from the front bumper, once again gaining the other camp members attention; there are many mundane tasks that in the old days where as easy as pie to accomplish but now living in this post-apocalyptic world not so much, unfortunately for me one of those things had suddenly made itself known leaving me with an embarrassing question.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"This is kind of awkward, but where exactly do you go to the bathroom around here?" Glenn must have noticed my discomfort with the subject at hand because instead of laughing (like I could tell he wanted too) he just smiled pleasantly and gestured with a nod of his head to the large vehicle he currently resided upon.

"Dale's pretty cool so he lets most of us use the facilities in the camper." Now that had been my first guess but with it being the older man's turn on watch duty next I didn't feel right going in and waking him up just because I needed to take a whizz; my uncertain expression was clearly obvious because Glenn continued on. "But if that's unavailable you always have option number two." I watched with thinly veiled trepidation as the young man pointed out towards the vast sea of green surrounded the settlement. "Natures restroom, it's always open."

"Awesome." I muttered while casting a brief look of pure loathing towards the dark eerie woods. "I was afraid you were going to say that." He shot me a small smile of apology before reaching for the torch set beside him.

"Here." Glenn scooped up the small object and lightly tossed it over the edge; moving forward quickly I held out my hands to catch the black cased light as it fell through the air, the torch landed heavily between my palms but I smiled proudly to myself for having caught it given such little warning. "You'll need it." Once comfortably gripped in my right hand I pushed the ON button down firmly...and was gifted with nothing. Oh god you have got to be kidding me, just to be sure I double checked by repeatedly jamming the switch on and off. "Might need to give it a shake." Offered an amused sounding voice helpfully from up height, growling lowly I reluctantly did as suggested and by some miracle the touchy appliance suddenly flickered on.

"Thanks for the heads up there genius." With the torch finally in working order I made my way around to the back of the old station wagon to grab the necessities needed for my little mission. The door opened without bother only sounding a tiny creak which thankfully didn't cause the dark haired teen to stir in the slightest, hauling forward the closest of the few boxes located in the trunk I reached inside and pulled out one of the last remaining rolls of toilet paper we had along with a small bottle of hand sanitizer; hopefully the camp is well stocked in the loo roll department because we sure as hell won't be any use given our lowly supply. Since I wasn't an octopus and only had two hands I quickly popped the plastic pot of clear gel into the back pocket of my jeans and then stuffed the toilet paper under my arm before turning back towards the forest; there's no way I was going in there unarmed which is why my left hand now tightly held the metal baseball bat from earlier.

"Don't go too far out." Glenn called, eyeing the bat uneasily. "Make sure I'm still able to hear you in case something happens."

"You want me to just squat right here so you can see me as well?" I joked childishly, the young man was visibly shocked by my words if his large eyes and wide open mouth were anything to go by. Laughing lightly I slowly started walking in the direction of the tree line for what I'm sure will be a very interesting experience.

**~#~#~#~#~**

Camping had always been a big part of Ellis family life. Every summer for as long as I can remember my siblings and I -along with our respective others- would gather at the home we'd all grown up in to ready ourselves for some fun in the great outdoors, once everything was set dad would load us all up into the motor home he'd rent especially for the vacation and then drive everyone down to a campsite located just outside of DC where we'd spend the next few weeks doing some well deserved family bonding. I liked the whole camping thing to an extent but honestly the bugs and dirt and dodgy weather which usually accompanied the experience never really were my thing and I just went along with it all because it made my dad so happy. The fond memories I have of those times with my parents and sister have become even more cherished since the world went to shit and they were brutally taken from me and often at night when Ashley's asleep and I've only the crickets for company my mind will drift back to those times of peace and happiness which for the most part usually help me to get some semblance of rest.

Peeing alone out in the woods hadn't been as bad as I'd first imagined, by some miracle Ash and I had managed to keep from having to do this over the past few weeks which is something I'm immensely thankful for because although it wasn't terrible it wasn't exactly the nicest thing to have to do either. After finishing the required business I quickly cleaned myself up and then brushed some clean soil over the area before pulling up my jeans; the moon shone down into the small clearing (which was only a little ways off from camp) lighting it well enough so that the torch wasn't even needed. Once zipped and buttoned I moved out from behind the large tree which had served as a scene, a harsh scream caught in my throat as wide blue eyes zeroed in on a shadowy form leant casually against a tree across the clearing. There was a moment where it felt like time froze and it had slim fingers itching for the bat propped up by the tree behind, my heart continued to pound painfully inside my chest as the tall figure slowly walked forward into the light; I watched silently as the silvery rays of the moon cast a halo around the mystery man finally revealing to me his identity. Upon recognizing the peeping tom I exhaled loudly, releasing some of the tension which had built up because of their unwanted and unexpected appearance.

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Not long." Daryl replied nonchalantly after stepping fully into the clearing, he must have seen the look of scepticism on my face because he continued on. "I ain't seen anythin' if that's what your worried about."

"I'm more worried by the fact that you seem to think it's alright to lurk around in the shadows watching someone while they're going to the bathroom." Turning my back to the younger Dixon I bent down to quickly snatch up the toilet roll and hand gel from the forest floor; once the latter was safely tucked away in my jeans pocket I grabbed the baseball bat and spun round, only to find the tall hick scowling angrily at me.

"I weren't watchin'."

"Whatever...but next time you feel the urge maybe you should remember that it's not exactly customary for men to spy on women while they're trying to have some alone time." Using my free hand I brushed a wayward strand of raven hair out of my face before pinning the man before me with a pointed look.

"Well it ain't _customary_ to go around tryin' to smash people's heads in on first sight either now is it?"

"I thought you were one of them, I already told you that." Daryl strode forward suddenly coming to a stop when his chest was only inches from my face; I swallowed thickly at the close proximity before moving my eyes up to meet the pair of darkening blue ones glaring down at me.

"And I told you that I _weren't_ watchin'."

"Alright, fine." He continued to stare down at me, the powerful gaze penetrating deep into my cerulean depths. I watched him wordlessly for a moment from beneath my lashes, taking this up close opportunity to really get a good look at him from the extremely narrowed eyes to the tightly pursed lips framed by a small goatee/beard; before the silence got to stifling and after another minute of subtle ogling I delicately cleared my throat and pulled my eyes away from his effectively breaking the connection. "So...what exactly did you want that was so important it couldn't wait five minutes for me to get back to camp?"

"You shouldn't bait Merle like you do." Daryl stated, completely ignoring my question. "He ain't one to go around makin' idle threats."

"Neither am I and if he tries anything again I have every intention of putting him down...permanently, you can tell him that along with the fact that he doesn't scare me."

"Well he should." He blew out a harsh breath before stepping away and out of my personal space. "My brother ain't stable at the best a times and havin' you here diggin' at him really ain't helpin' any." I scoffed loudly and shot the man a look of complete and utter disbelief.

"So what, do you just expect me to stand there and do nothing while that sick ass brother of yours continues to intimidate and harass an already traumatized young girl?"

"I didn't say that." The younger Dixon roughly ran a hand over his tired face and then into the messy locks sat above it, grabbing a fistful of sandy hair between large fingers he cast a look up at the dark sky seemly fighting over something within himself. I watched as he brought his right hand up to his mouth and began to chew on the thumb nail as the struggle continued to wage, after a moment or two it looked like he had finally come to a decision over what to do. "Look, all I came to tell you is that you should keep a close eye on that girl your travelin' with. Once Merle has his sights on somethin' he usually gets it and by whatever means necessary...however much you want to you can't be with that girl every second of every day and believe me when I tell you he'll be waitin'."

His blunt words solidified the fears I had already collected surrounding the elder Dixon and his heinous and unclean thoughts towards Ashley. In that moment I suddenly realized that while I stood hear chatting she was alone and unconscious in the car just ripe for the picking; my body quickly fell into line with my brain and I was just about to set of running back to camp when I remembered Glenn, he was right there standing guard with a huge ass rifle by his side surely if Merle tried anything the little kid with a big heart would be there to protect her. As my own returned to a normal rhythm I was able to think over everything and although extremely thankfully (sort of) for the validation and early warning, one thing continued to nag and niggle at me.

"Why are you telling me this?" Daryl's head shot up at my question and his eyes instantly narrowed. Given a moment to rethink what I had just said it was understandable that he had reacted the way he did, probably thinking I was brushing off his assistance; before I could continue and explain myself properly the irritated hick moved forward and pinned me with a cold look.

"If you don't want my help lady then fine, forget I even said anythin'...just don't come cryin' to me when somethin' nasty happens to your little friend." He turned abruptly and without another word started marching back towards the shadows from which he came.

"Wait, please." Shoving the half finished roll of toilet paper under my arm once again I quickly followed after the irate man. "That's not what I meant." Using my free hand I grabbed onto his forearm once it came into reach, to my complete surprise instead of shrugging me off and leaving he actually froze to the spot upon contact; Daryl remained silent but turned his head a fraction so that I was visible in his peripheral vision. "I'm sorry if I offended you in any way, that wasn't my intention and I'm sorry again if I made you feel like the help isn't greatly appreciated because it is...it's just that I don't understand why you're doing this." Sighing softly I removed my hand from his arm and took a small step back. "Why are you going behind your brothers back to help people that up until a few hours ago you hadn't even met?"

"I get that you and the all the others think I'm a dumb ass redneck who ain't good for nothin but huntin' and killin' and hell, you might be right...but one thing I damn sure ain't is my brother." I watched without a sound as Daryl grudgingly turned back round to face me, his eyes looking anywhere but my face. "I've done my fair share of things I ain't proud of I'll admit, but even I ain't cruel enough to just bury my head in the sand and let somethin' happen to someone who don't deserve it." Finally the younger Dixon raised his head from looking down at the ground so that our eyes could once again meet. "Might surprise ya to hear but I was raised better then that...we both where." He muttered the last part of the statement under his breath and if I hadn't been standing so close I never would had heard; the strong and unwavering tone of voice throughout the entire speech was unexpected and with such seer emotion clear behind each word it was almost as though he was trying to convince himself of the fact and not just me.

"Must have been one hell of a person?" Daryl quirked a brow at this. "No offense, but you and your brother don't strike me as the kind who were easy kids to bring up."

"That's puttin' it mildly." He replied dryly but you could see the slight smile tugging at the sides of his mouth. A tiny laugh escaped me at the sandy haired mans answered even though I tried my hardest to keep it in but the image in my head of the pair as youngsters running wild and causing mayhem was just too much; once I had quietened Daryl went on to answer my previous question in a low tone. "And yeah she was...toughest woman I ever met."

"Sounds familiar." I voiced softly thinking of my own mother. The dark woody clearing fell into silence which in itself wasn't particularly uncomfortable considering everything that had just happened; we must have stayed like that for a few minutes before I took it upon myself to break it. "I should probably be getting back, it's been a while and I don't want Glenn to start worrying that's something's happened." The younger Dixon brother nodded silently in understanding and moved over slightly to make room for me to get by, I gave a polite smile of gratitude before carefully slipping past making sure not to brush up against him while doing so; stopping briefly at the tree line of the small space I glanced back over my shoulder finding Daryl still standing in the same spot. "Thank you." He looked up again at the sound of my voice. "I'll make sure to watch Ashley even closer from now on."

"She's not the only one." My brow furrowed in confusion at his words. "Merle don't like bein' made a fool, especially in public...and you have managed nothing but since first meetin'." I turned fully so that I was once again facing the tall ocean eyed man. "He don't forgive and he damn well don't forget so watch yourself...my brothers got one hell of a mean temper and always goes lookin' for revenge."

"Spoken like a man whose been on the receiving end more than once." Daryl's jaw visible tightened at my observation making it clear that it was something he didn't want to talk about now or probably ever; taking the not so subtle hint I left the previous topic for another day and returned to what had got us into this in the first place. "Anyway, thanks again." He nodded wordlessly once more which I took as my cue to go; before being completely enveloped by the greenery I decided to clue the silent man in on something that might help him understand why I was so fiercely set on protecting Ash. "And for future reference that girls not just my friend...she's my niece." And with those parting words I disappeared into the undergrowth and started the short trek back to camp.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>**: This is going to be the last update for a couple of weeks because I've decided to take a little break over Easter in which I hope to get a few more chapters written ...now onto the important stuff, I would like to give a massive thanks once again to those that of you that have reviewed so far the positive response I've received really helps to motive my creativity. **

**As a personal reply to Lydia I'd just like to say fire away, having a story banner made would be awesome and the fact you would take time out to make it is also extremely flattering. Concerning Charlotte I have modelled her appearance on** **Polish/American ****actress ****Dagmara Dominczyk, I'll post a link to the pic that made me choose her on my profile page...and if you wanted to include Ashley then just look up a snap of Kendall Jenner. **


	4. Chapter Four

**Disclaimer****: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

The first couple of days Ashley and I spent in camp went by relatively quickly and without much excitement, we helped the other survivors out with the daily chores which included washing, cooking, cleaning and any other stuff that needed doing; it wasn't exactly the most enjoyable way to spend the day but I would take scrubbing pots and pans and peeling vegetables over running for my life from rabid hordes of starving walkers any day of the week. For the most part the group welcomed us with open arms and friendly smiles which was kind and extremely considerate unfortunately however there's always a few exceptions, aside from the Dixon brothers there was only one other who gave me a bad vibe and that was Ed Peletier. During the two days since our arrival he was the only person who didn't bother to come and introduce himself leaving it up to his softly spoken wife to do it for him, why a nice lady like Carol was married to such an ass was beyond me but to each their own I guess; they had a lovely daughter named Sophia who like her mother was very quiet and tended to shy away from the crowd.

One thing I was majorly grateful for was that Merle hadn't bothered me or Ashley since we got here, it seemed that the rude redneck was either stumbling around drunk off his ass or out hunting by himself or with his brother...now I don't know what I was expecting to happen when it came to Daryl but following our little tête-à-tête in the woods I thought maybe we'd reached an understanding of sorts but that notion went straight out the window because the following day he acted like nothing had happened and was once again back to that standoffish guy with an attitude problem; since I'd only known him for less than 24 hours I just shrugged it off but inside I wasn't sure how I truly felt about the snub.

On the third day after joining the settlement our small group gained some new blood. I was sat down around the small fire pit prepping food for lunch with the help of Jacqui and Andrea when two unknown vehicles came rolling up the dirt road, everyone went on high alert as they approached arming themselves with any weapon in reach; the children were quickly ushered into the RV along with their mothers to keep them safe and out of harm's way. As the minivan and open top jeep came to a stop inside of the camps perimeter Ashley and Amy who had previously been hanging clothes across the clearing made their way over to us, I made sure my young niece was securely shielded behind me as the mysterious strangers began climbing out of their respective automobiles. In total there were eleven of them, three from the 4x4 (Officer Shane Walsh, Lori Grimes and her son Carl) and eight from the church van (Jan and Mark, Stephanie, Ray and Monica, Frances, Joe and Robert); of the latter group the majority where of the older generation which given the current group sort of gave us and even mix. The question as to how they found us was quickly answered when none other than Glenn -who had been out on a supply run to the city- emerged for one of the stationary vehicles, he easily explained what had happened stating that he met up with the others on his way back to camp after seeing them speeding out of Atlanta as quickly as humanly possible; upon further questioning we found out that all eleven had come from small towns in states northerly of Georgia which had recently fallen to the undead. With survival being our shared goal it was decided that they were all welcome to stay for as long as needed, it wasn't a unanimous decision however since Merle made it clear that he didn't want a cop hanging around or anymore useless old farts neither.

By late afternoon all the newbie's had their tents set up and some much needed food in their bellies; it was due to great teamwork that this task was accomplished so quickly and it was clear that they were all thankfully for the helping hands. As the only doctor in camp it was down to me alone to give all new members a quick health check to make sure they were doing okay and most importantly to see if any were infected, thankfully all were clear of bites or scratches and the only real problems anyone had were thanks to not drinking and eating enough; it was nearing sundown by the time I had finished checking over most of the group and after such a long time it made me remember just how tiring work used to be. Before hunkering down for the evening I had two more screening to do and they were for the Grimes duo, after popping their tent Lori and her son disappeared inside for the rest of the afternoon so I chose to just leave them be until later; Shane on the other hand was much more cooperative and I was able to clear him quickly so that he could continue helping out the rest of his new camp mates.

It was getting dark and going on dinner time and still The Grimes family had yet to surface. With this in mind Shane had gone to retrieve the pair for supper only to return alone minutes later with a sour expression marring his otherwise handsome features; as Lori and Carl were seemly set on staying in their tent for the rest on the night I was left with only one option. After making sure Ashley was happily settled down around the newly lit fire with a plate of food I snatched up my blue medical bag and started off towards the largest shelter in camp. My route unfortunately took me past the Dixon's who where -as per usual- lounging outside of their tent away from everybody else chowing down on the squirrel I'd seen Daryl walking around with earlier, Merle had a half empty bottle of whisky in his free hand and was clearly already stinking drunk so it was no surprise that once his bleary eyes spotted me walking towards them he smirked and started running his mouth.

"Hey Doc, come ta give me my physical?"

"Wouldn't waste my time, I already know you're a lost cause." Daryl had his head down seeming ignoring both Merle and myself as he silently pushed around the remaining food left on the plate sat in his lap; ocean blue eyes quickly scanned the younger Dixon's hunched over frame before returning to the front...well if that's how he wants to act then fine, two can play at that game.

"Now that's just unprofessional." I watched for a moment as the drunkard struggled awkwardly to sit up straighter, it was quite an amusing sight actually but I had more important things to do so after casting the floundering hick one last glance I continued on my way; my boot clad feet couldn't have taken more than a couple of steps before Merle's slurring voice sounded once again. "You see I got myself a problem that needs urgent addressin'."

"And what would that be?" The words were out of my mouth before I could think but after clocking the nasty look on Merle's face I was instantly regretting them.

"Got this throbbin' pain...right here." The vile hillbilly looked me right in the eyes as he knocked the bare dish off his legs and reached down to grab his jean covered crotch. "Wanna kiss it better?" Merle gave himself a firm squeeze through the fabric causing me to look away from the foul scene in disgust, he must have enjoyed the reaction his crude exploit received because a rough rumbling laugh soon filled the area.

"You make me sick."

"Don't be like that suga, you know you want me." Yeah, about as much as I want a bullet in the brain...which thinking about it I'd probably still take over having to touch that pitiful excuse of a man. Not wanting to be in his presence any longer I hoisted the strap of the medical bag -which had slipped down at some point during the conversation- back up onto my shoulder and once more began walking in the direction of the Grimes family shelter all the while ignoring Merle crude drunken ramblings which he continued on with even after I had moved out of sight.

Once the minor slope leading down to the small clearing currently housing the fully zipped blue tent was descended I was faced with a problem...how exactly do you knock on a door made out of a thin sheet of tarp? Stepping a little closer my eyes scanned the front of the newly erected structure and found that it wasn't completely sealed after all, one of the entrances was as I had suspected but the other was only pulled closed halfway -probably because they'd overheat in there otherwise- leaving a slight gap at the bottom just big enough for me to slip through; hearing muffled movement coming from behind the slim two-toned curtain I decided that it was now or never. Clearing the remaining distance between myself and the tent door I silently reached out for the softly fluttering fabric, curling the slim fingers of my right hand around it once finally getting a grip; so as to not startle the already shaken pair I tried to be as quiet as possible while lifting the flap and stealthily popping my head inside. Considering that it had only been put up a few hour before the interior of their tent was already beginning to look surprising cosy, a good sized table had been placed in the middle of the room with several pieces of unpacked luggage scattered close beside; there was a camp bed pushed up to one side of the room and across from that was a second one...which at this moment in time had the inhabitants of the small dwelling gathered around.

"Knock, Knock." Lori's head shot around to face me at such speed that I almost winched in pain fearing she may have given herself whiplash in the process. "Sorry for intruding...I'm Charlotte, we met briefly before." Her suspicious brown eyes watched me closely and it was clear by the woman's continued silence and narrowed orbs that she wasn't happy with my presence in their new abode in the slightest; clearing my throat softly I tried to ease the growing tension before the overprotective mother decided to take matters into her own hands. "I understand that this isn't really the best time and your probably exhausted but I really do need to check you and your son over...it's nothing personal, just a precaution." The atmosphere in the small shelter grew increasing uncomfortable almost to the extent that I wanted to turn and leave, it must have stayed like this for a good few minutes before Lori finally removed her piercing gaze from me by turning back to her son who lay silently atop the small bed.

"You better come in." The dark haired woman voiced quietly, her back once again facing me; as quietly as possible I raised the door flap higher and gracefully stepped inside carefully avoiding the suitcase placed right next to the threshold. "Carl's asleep, I'd appreciate it if he could stay that way." Sapphire orbs flicked to the small blanket covered body curled up on the cot. Seeing the young boy sleeping there peacefully brought a small smile to my face; it's amazing just how resilient children can be, a lot of the time when faced with difficult situations it turns out that the youngsters adapt and cope better that most adults. My smile soon faded when I realized that however much it pained me to do so I needed the kid awake for the medical to be able to go ahead, in an ideal word I'd love to just give him a free pass and move on but with the dangers we faced on a daily basis overlooking the slightest thing could bring about more trouble that camp could really do without.

"I don't mean to be the bad guy and I hate to sound like a broken record but if you want to stay here then I'll have to give him a check-up sooner or later." Glancing over her shoulder Lori pinned me with a hard look, I could see the fight behind the dark depths and knew that if I continued on in the manner I was she was going to snap and things were going to get nasty so in hopes of continuing without causing a blowout I chose to change tack. "Alright, I'm sure we can come to some sort of compromise here but you have to answer me one question first and truthfully...has he been bitten?" The room fell silent once again and my fear for the boys health grew exponentially, I stayed quiet and waited patiently for the dark haired mother to speak.

"Do you honestly think I'd have let you in here if he had?" She answered softly after what felt like hours.

"You could be bluffing." Wordlessly Lori reached out and pulled the warm fleece blanket back up and over the slumbering child before finally pushing herself up off the floor, once at full height I noticed for the first time that the slim woman was tall maybe 5'9 or so which compared to my own 5'5 made her almost Amazonian; she crossed her arms over her chest before locking chocolate brown eyes with my own set of blue ones.

"That's true, but do you really think I'd lie about something this important?"

"Yes." I stated bluntly, earning a sharp glare from the clearly angered lady. Gripping the strap of my medical bag tightly between slightly shaking hands I straightened up fully, returning the younger woman's pointed expression. "In my experience mothers will do anything to protect their children."

"Then you must also know that as mother I'd die before letting one of those creatures touch him." Although I may not have had any children of my own helping raise Ashley from a young age has given me the experience and understanding to be able to comprehend the maternal instinct Lori was referring to, I may only be her aunt and to some that wouldn't mean a hell of a lot but as I have already proven I would do anything to unsure that Ash survived and was taken care of; swallowing the lump which had managed to make itself at home in the back of my throat I gave a small nod catching Lori's attention with the movement.

"I do." My voice was a mere whisper but seeing as the tent was silent I knew the other woman had heard me. Lori's arms loosened and the unwelcoming expression she had been wearing since I first entered softened considerably at my words, upon arriving at camp she had seen Ashley's slim form huddled close to me and it didn't take a genius to figure out the connection we shared; this lady wasn't stupid and she knew why this was needed and could see that despite my fixed determination to check over her son for any form of infection inside I understood her reasoning for doing so and if put in her situation would do the same thing for my family. After clearing my throat subtly to fully eradicate the obstruction there I spoke again but this time my tone was back to its usually level but with a slightly sterner core. "Tomorrow morning before breakfast I will be back...and then I won't be taking no for an answer."

"Thank you." She said quietly after a few moments of silence, I glanced over to Carl briefly hoping to whoever was up there listening that his mother was really telling the truth because if he did happen to have the sickness then his future was bleak and the camps possible reaction to the news if it did come to pass was something I didn't wish to think about; taking a deep breath I turned back -steeling myself encase of another battle- just because her son was getting a free pass this evening didn't mean she was too.

"I'm afraid you don't get off as easy...still need to take a look at you." Lori silently nodded, surprising me with the fact that she didn't put up any resistance. "We should probably get started, that way it'll be done and dusted before it's completely dark out." Looking round the small semi furnished shelter my eyes instantly zeroed in on the empty bed set a little ways behind me. "Ummm, if you could take a seat that'd be great." Gesturing to the small cot we both rounded the table but from opposite sides, she dropped down onto the edge of it with a quiet sigh sweeping a loose tendril of chestnut brown hair back behind her ear; slipping the bag off my shoulder I moved forward and took a seat next her placing the blue medical case on the floor by my feet. "So firstly I'm just going to check your vitals...can you stretch your right arm out towards me please." Wordlessly she held out the requested appendage which I pulled over gently so that it rested comfortably across my lap instead of hovering awkwardly in mid-air, once laid flat on my jean covered thighs I grasped her thin wrist gently and proceeded to turn in over so that the underside was facing up before finally placing the index and middle finger of my right hand firmly down onto the area of skin just below Lori's thumb.

"Are you a doctor?" Glancing up momentarily I found the brunette watching my every movements with interest.

"Used to be, before the outbreak." Without letting go of her wrist or announcing so I continued on with my exam noting mentally that her respiration was slightly heavy but not overly so that it needed further examination. While having the opportunity I took the time to swiftly look over her face, like a lot of the other new campers her skin and hair had lost some vibrancy and her dark eyes looked tired and red (probably from crying and lack of sleep) this could all be put down to the stress and trauma thrust upon them due to everything that has happened. The room fell silent again and although I have nothing against quiet I found myself continuing the conversation in hopes of getting Lori to speak again. "What about yourself?" Psychology may not be my field of expertise but I did take a few classes in college but even without it didn't take much to be able to see that this woman was going through a lot of pain and if left untreated could easily fall into a dark pit of depression.

"A housewife I guess...if that counts." Her weary eyes had moved off of me and were back once again to her son who still lay soundlessly asleep on the bed opposite.

"Of course it does, one of the hardest and most underappreciated jobs in the world." I moved my hand back and released her arm before relaying my findings. "Your breathings okay, pulse is a little fast though which is understandable given the circumstances." Reaching up slowly I placed the back of my hand to her forehead brushing aside the brown bangs hanging there as I did so, having such a small amount of equipment greatly limited what it is I could do causing me to rely greatly on the skills learned during med school as oppose to the instruments now commonly used; after a minute I pulled back again. "Temperatures good...maybe a touch high, that could be down to not drinking enough water." She didn't try and correct me so I guess the assumption was correct. "Okay now I just need to do a quick body assessment, is that alright?"

"Sure." Great, awesome...now for the extremely uncomfortable bit.

"Could you please slip off your shirt?" In a flash her eyes were back on my face and it was easy to see the surprise and unease clearly visible behind them. "Sorry, I know this is awkward but I've got to make sure your not hiding any surprises." Lori remained completely still for a few tense moments her eyes continuing to search my features probably searching for any trace of a lie, I had been told on several occasion that I had a trustworthy face which thankfully must have been pretty accurate because finally she pulled her arms from the purple checked button up; dropping the shirt down onto the bed beside her the dark haired woman held her arms out front so that I had I clear view of both limbs. Cerulean eyes carefully scanned the newly exposed skin and after finding no cause for alarm moved onto stage two. "Lift up your top." The young mother was obviously hesitant and to ease her worry I gave a small reassuring smile, it must have done the trick because like before she did as asked, slowly pulling the hem of her black vest up to show her flat toned stomach; again after an inspection of both back and front I found that her skin was clear of any bites or cuts. "Thank you, now if you could just pull your jeans down quickly so I can check your legs then this'll be finished and I'll be out of your hair." The simple mention of my departure seemed to make the dark haired beauty move a little faster and in a matter of seconds she was on her feet and her trousers were down and from there it only took a minute before the full exam was completed and Lori Grimes was given the all clear. "Alrighty, all done." Overall she was doing okay edging scarily close to being too thin but just hanging in there on the healthy side, her clothes and uncovered skin were a little dirty but honestly everyone else here was as well so that didn't really matter and anyway that's nothing a good wash and a nice meal couldn't fix.

"Did I pass?" She asked while fixing her clothes.

"With flying colours." I replied politely looking up at her; it was then that I fully noticed the dark circles set under her eyes, somehow I had overlooked them earlier but now -with the light of the lone lantern hung from the ceiling by the bed shinning bright- they were particularly noticeable...not that I have any room to talk given the shiners I'm carrying around at the moment. "Can I ask a question?" Once given a nod of conformation I carried on. "Have you been sleeping at all?"

"Has anyone."

"I'm not asking just anyone, I'm asking you." She fell silent again and I feared I may have overstepped the bounds by trying to pry to deep, once more the room quietened with the stillness only disturbed briefly by Carl shifting positions in his slept; we remained like this for a while but then Lori's soft voice broke the hushed atmosphere.

"Maybe an hour, here or there...but never more than that."

"Any reason, besides the obvious?"

"Nightmares." Was her whispered reply, I watched wordlessly as she collapsed back onto the camp bed; a trembling hand gradually coming up to tightly clutch the silver locket and plain wedding band hanging from around her neck. "Every time I close my eyes he's there...I can see him, an-and he's one of them." She sucked in a ragged breath, her voice wavering and thick with emotion. "I should have gone to him...I should have saved him, but those things were everywhere and I had Carl...we barely made it out alive, if Shane hadn't come I don't know what would have happened." The hand clasping the necklace tightened considerably causing her nails to bite painfully into the palm and knuckles to turn a stark white.

"Who are you talking about?" I asked gently, shifting slightly closer to the fragile woman.

"My husband." Lori looked down at the floor, her breathing suddenly becoming much heavier than before. "I was so cruel to him...the last thing I said was that I wondered if he cared about Carl and I at all." Dark eyes rapidly filled with tears as she raised her head to watch her son across the room. "He probably died thinking I didn't love him."

"Hey, that's not true." Scooting the remaining space between us I swiftly slipped an arm around her slim shoulders, since she made no move to shrug me off I gave a light squeeze to show my support and offer some semblance of comfort. "Whatever happened between you, I'm sure he knew how much you cared for him...there's no way someone just forgets that." Just because I hadn't been in a serious relationship for a long while didn't mean I knew nothing about them...also, having a wild-child younger sister who changed boyfriends quicker than most people changed underwear helped to hone the skill further too. A muffled sob brought me back to the present and I turned back to Lori just in time to see her hastily wipe away a lone tear from her cheek; she looked so utterly drained and tired that I couldn't in clear conscious just leave her here like this, not if there was some way I could help. "Look, this isn't a permanent solution by any means...but I may have something that'll help." Turning slightly on the spot I reached down and plucked the med-kit up from the floor, once settled on my lap I quickly unzipped the case and pushed up the top. "There aren't many but I think you could use them." Reaching inside into one of the inner pockets I pulled out a small half empty container of sleeping pills, during mine and Ashley's travels sometimes sleep didn't exactly come easy...let's just say Lori isn't the only one having nightmares, at those times popping a pill was necessary for rest to even be an option. Sighing faintly I held out the clear orange bottle for the other woman to take, she eyed my outstretched arm curiously for a moment before finally excepting the offered medication. "Take half of one about thirty minutes before settling down for the night, that way you won't be completely out of it if should anything happens. Absolutely _no_ alcohol for as long as you're taking them and if you start having any side effects find me and tell me immediately alright." My bright blue orbs surveyed the woman before me as she silently spun the bottle around in her hand.

"Why are you doing this? You don't have to help me." Her question caught me a little off guard and given different circumstances I may have been slightly offended that she sounded suspicious and seemed to think I may have an ulterior motive for the kind deed but given the times being cautious of the unknown is what helps keep you alive.

"Of course I do, it's my job." After quickly re-sealing the bag I pushed up off of the cot, shouldered the blue medical kit once back on my feet. "So I'm going to go, leave the two of you in peace for the rest of the evening...if you happen to get the munchies later on I'm pretty sure they'll be some leftovers hanging around so feel free to grab whatever's there." Lori nodded and even went as far as to offer a tiny smile, I returned the gesture before turning and making my way towards the door; pushing aside the entrance flap I glanced back over my shoulder once more to bid the dark haired woman farewell. "Night then, I hope the pills help and I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight, and thank you...again." Offering another smile I straightened the strap of my bag before stepping out of the tent and back into the cool summer night air.

**~#~#~#~#~**

By the end of the week camp had fallen into a routine of sorts with the women doing the majority -if not all- of the domestic work while the men spent their days running patrols of the area to make sure we were safe from any stray walkers that may happen to be staggering around, so far none have been seen which could be down to us being hidden so far up in the hills; the guys were also in charge of keeping the main fires burning and if any handiwork needed doing it was passed to them as the female survivors already had enough to do without adding DIY to the list. I never was much of a Suzy Homemaker type back before the world turned to shit and honestly being one now isn't exactly an experience that I'm realising especially when forced to watch the likes of Merle and Ed sitting around doing nothing but drinking and smoking while the rest of us worked our asses off; a few of the other ladies shared my views on the matter of unfair work share, Jacqui in particular.

The midday sun was out in force casting the growing settlement in a rich golden light, the temperature was blisteringly hot and if it weren't for the cool shadows produced by the surround trees I doubt half of us would be on our feet right now. Glancing over from my place leant up against Daryl's motorcycle I watched silently as Ashley and Amy -sat in the shade of the RV's awing- entertained the youngest members of the group while their respective mothers wandered around gathering together the next load of laundry in need of washing, after the slightly distant initial meeting Ash had built a fast friendship with the young blonde and the pair spent a lot of their free time together as well as helping each other with daily chores; seeing my niece genuinely smiling for the first time in weeks filled my heart with so much warmth and happiness..._slowly_ she was regaining some of that spark which had been lost and although still a shadow of her former self it was amazing to see the progress made it such little time.

"Your either extremely brave or incredibly stupid honey, because the last time someone touched that bike they came away nursing a bruise the size of Texas." Pulling my eyes away from the scene before me I slowly turned towards the voice which had broken my reverie and found Jacqui stood there with a small basket full of dirty clothes in her arms.

"Really?" I asked curiously. "And who had the misfortune of getting on the wrong side of one of our resident rednecks?"

"Glenn." She replied before shifting the laundry hamper around so that it rested comfortably under her left arm. "The poor boy had barely even brushed the damn thing before he was over here shouting and screaming like an oversized child." Looking down I slowly ran my eyes over the mass of gleaming black metal beneath me, I'll freely admit the it's a beautiful bit of machinery that's for sure but the bonds which men sometimes form with their bikes and cars is just something I'll never understand.

"Boy and their toys huh?"

"Now sweetie, I don't recall ever saying it was Daryl." Jacqui's dark eyes narrowed as she glanced over her shoulder at the ramshackle tent pitched no more than a few meters away, following her line of sight I watched wordlessly as an empty bottle of booze came sailing out of the small shelters entrance at colossal speed, smashing loudly on the dirt covered floor in a blur of amber glass.

"Merle." At the rate he's going the drunken idiot will be through his stash of alcohol in a matter of days if not before and if he's an asshole now than I'd hate to see what he's like when he's out of whiskey and going through withdrawal.

"Uh-huh, that bastard verbally assault Glenn for a good long while before finally knocking him to the floor...caught his shoulder on a rock as he landed and was out of action for a couple of days. Before the dumb shit went off to drink his ass into oblivion he made sure to tell the rest of us that if he caught any more dirty foreigners touching his families property then there'd be consequences."

"I doubt he phrased it quite as politely as that though right?"A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she quickly readjusted her grip on the basket once again. Sighing softly I carefully pushed up off of the bike so that there was no possible risk of knocking it over because sitting on it and scratching it are two _completely_ different things and although we may not be bestest buds I think there'd be a hell of a lot better chance of surviving Daryl's fury regarding the first one as opposed to the latter. "Out of everyone on the planet how is it that a scumbag like Merle Dixon manages to survive when so many other legitimately good people have died?" The dark skinned woman before me pursed her lips together tightly at my question and finally turned away from the Dixon family tent as looking at it clearly made her angry and with good reason, not a day goes by around here without one or other of them making some sort of racist or sexist comment; Daryl may not do it as often or as uncouthly as his brother but that doesn't mean I haven't heard him mouthing off at people a time or too...especially Glenn, the poor kid must have a freaking hillbilly bull's-eye painted on his back or something.

"I guess cockroaches really can live through anything." I laughed faintly at the older ladies words and followed behind silently as she moved over to the smaller camp fire where some of the other females of the group (Andrea, Miranda, Carol and Lori) had gathered, much like Jacqui they also each held a load of washing in their arms; we came to a stop beside them and I offered a friendly smile in greeting which -to my surprise- was returned by all. It may have only been a few days since her arrival but even in that little time I was noticing the subtle changes in Lori both physically and emotionally, outwardly her appearance had improved tenfold and she now looked better than most of the other survivors which is embarrassing as well as highly irritating; the sleeping pills seemed to be working there magic as the dark circles under her brown eyes now looked slightly less noticeable than they had previously. One thing that still worried me however was the heavy guilt she carried concerning her husband, there is only so much that can be done to help a person who is suffering that deeply because the single individual who can truly fix what is going on is the one dealing with it and honestly there is just no easy cure for dispelling that feeling of culpability which was no doubt eating her up inside...trust me know.

"Ready to go?" Andrea asked courteously while brushing a loose strand of blonde hair off of her face.

"Sure am." Jacqui readjusted her full basket of clothes for the second time before turning to face me. "You got any laundry in need of doing Charlotte?" During mine and Ashley journey across country we accumulated a stack load of washing and over the seven days we've been in camp I've probably managed to work through about three quarters of what we had originally gathered, as part of her chores it was decided that Ash would finish up the rest but since she's currently busy babysitting the youngsters to help free up their mothers time than I might as well go and do it myself; the fact that I had nothing to do at present and was slowly going out of my mind with boredom only helped make up my mind on the matter.

"Now that you mention it, I think I might."

"Well your more than welcome to come and join us, having more people around will only help pass the time quicker." An amused grin slowly spread across my lips as I pinned the blonde woman before with a teasing look; like Jacqui and myself she too wasn't loving becoming a Martha Stewart wannabe and although the golden haired lady may not voice her displeasure you can sure tell by some of the faces she pulls.

"Andrea I'm getting a slight inkling here that you're not enjoying your new domestic goddess status." Her crystal blue eyes narrowed slightly and a playful scowl made its way onto her pretty features.

"What gave me away?" I laughed lightly and was soon joined by some of the other ladies in the group. It's strange really how such a horrible situation can bond so many people so quickly, if this disaster had never happened the likelihood of any of us meeting was slim to none and although if given the chance I would turn back time in a heartbeat the friendships forming between us now were one of the things (along with Ashley) that helped get me through the day.

"Jeez, how long you got?" Andrea rolled her eyes at my joking causing another tiny bubble of laughter to escape. Suddenly the short sharp burst of a car horn sounded breaking the contented atmosphere that had descended, turning in the direction of the noise we were greeted by the sight of an extremely irritated Ed Peletier leant up against the side of the car which was being used to transport the group to and from camp to the creek; he took a long drag from his cigarette all the while glowering angrily at the six of us. Clearing my throat quietly I quickly pulled my gaze away from the pissed looking man and returned it to the kind women surrounding me. "You guys better get going, I'll just go grab some stuff and meet you down there in a few."

"You sure...we can wait if you want." Judging by the look that came to Carol's face at the blonde's words making Ed linger any longer wouldn't be in any of our best interests.

"I'll be fine." A few of the women sent sceptical looks my way so in hopes of easing their worry I smiled warmly and waved a hand towards the stationary vehicle, gesturing wordless for them to get moving. "Seriously...go."

"Alright, but don't take too long." I nodded in understanding and watched as the group slowly headed for the car, Andrea hug back momentarily to voice a thought that she didn't want overheard by everyone. "I have a feeling we might need the backup." Her icy blue orbs flicked to the large figure still lazily puffing away next to the ladies means of transportation; well, well it seems that I'm not the only one getting a bad vibe from Mr Peletier.

"I'll be quick...although there's no doubt in my mind that you could take him solo." She chuckled lowly before bidding me farewell once more and going off to join the others who had all piled into the back of the car while the two of us had been talking, it didn't take long for her to reach them and once she had slipped in the engine quickly roared to life and in a matter of minutes the vehicle had disappeared down the dirty road headed for the creek situated at the bottom of the hill. Some of the other campers that happened to be wandering around stopped what they were doing to watch the car as it rumbled down the path, as you can imagine not a lot happens around here which is why even the littlest things can earn a reaction which would normally be saved for something like a spaceship landing. Exhaling softly I cast a look in Ashley's direction catching the dark haired teen at the exact moment a large beaming smile appeared on her rosy lips, knowing that she was safe and happily occupied for the time being helped to marginally ease my nervousness at leaving her for a while. Daryl's words of warning still rang loudly in my mind and for the most part I stayed within reaching distant of my niece but like he had said I couldn't be there all the time so when it was necessary for me to go I made sure that Ash was never alone and instead surrounded by those I knew would stand up for her if needed, so far this seemed to be keeping Merle at bay but there was a feeling deep in my gut telling me that it wouldn't work forever.

Brushing back an irritating lock of raven hair that just wouldn't stay out of my face I spun around and started towards mine and Ashley's tent in search of that elusive load of laundry which somehow continued to evade washing. Our moderately sized abode was nestled in the tree line of one of the small clearing littering the camp site, there were several other shelters pitched up around us and thankfully we were fortunate enough be neighboured on either side by sweetheart Glenn and the lovely Jacqui. Slipping as quietly as possible past the Dixon quarters so to not disturb the slumbering beast within I continued on my way sending a friendly smile to anyone who crossed my path, it didn't take long to arrive at the entrance of our two bedroomed tent and after quickly pulling off my dusty black boots I stepped inside. There wasn't an amazing amount of room to manoeuvre within but seeing as both myself and Ashley were on the shorter side it suited us just fine, the center section of our little lodging was pretty bare with the only item of furniture decorating it being a mini wind-up lantern that sat in the corner next to my khaki duffle. Dropping down onto my knees I shuffled forward a little until I was next to the light green bag, reaching out my right hand I grabbed the handle and pulled it over with one sharp tug; the clean washing was piled up in Ash and I's respective sleeping areas so if calculations are right the only contents of this bag should be exactly what I'm looking for...with a swift tug the zipper was down and just like I suspected it was full of dirty laundry.

Great, well that's one thing out of the way all I need to do now is mosey on down to the water and get started. Leaning through the arch leading into my part of the tent I grabbed up the oversized shirt which I'd worn to bed the previous night I stuffed it into the duffle along with everything else before promptly re-zipping it, just as I was reading myself to stand the light which had been shining in through the open doorway suddenly eclipsed as a dark shadow enveloped the small space; glancing over my shoulder I was met with a sight that that just about ruined my day. Merle Dixon stood unsteadily in the entryway of my tent his face looking the most haggard I have ever seen it, the rednecks eyes were bleary and clearly bloodshot and it was pretty obvious by their crumpled state that he had once again fallen asleep in his clothes (ones that he'd already been wearing for several day may I add); there was also an extremely potent smell emanating from his person and I mean almost to the point that you could get drunk off of the fumes alone. I watched him silently for a little while longer and just as I readied myself to speak the bumbling hick took a shaky step forward almost catching his foot on the edge of the groundsheet, a loud curse spilled from Merle's thin cracked lips and slyly I shifted back and away from him to keep some distance between us (or as much as possible given such a small space); unfortunately my slight movement caught the tall mans attention and a slimy smile quickly spread across his face causing a bubble of unease to grow within my belly.

The almost deafening silence surrounding us was rapidly become too much to bear and as I opened my mouth to ask what the hell he wanted Merle unexpectedly produced a black trash bag from behind his back, wordlessly he dropped the plastic sack down onto the ground before me the evil smile on his lips growing ever wider at the blank look set my features; with a swift flick of his heavy boot clad foot the bag shot across the floor surprising fast smacking straight into the side of my leg.

"Everythin' in their needs cleanin'." Looking down I eyed the bag curiously for a moment. The power of his kick had caused a large split to appear in the side of the black sack giving me a clear view of its contents, even the briefest of glances of Merle's unmentionables was something I happily could have gone the rest of my life without seeing; pulling my eyes away from the unpleasant sight I turned back to the elder Dixon pinning him with a hard look.

"Well you better get down to the creek then." A harsh laugh sounded from the redneck as he took another step closer which only increased his towering presence, there was nowhere else for me to go so all I could do was remain seated on the ground silently praying that the trickle of fear running through me wasn't outwardly noticeable.

"That's funny, was just about to say the same to you."

"Excuse me?" I voiced in pure disbelief.

"Don't act dumb sweetness, it don't suit ya." Merle came to a stop right in front of me with the only space between us being the gap his bag of washing created, reluctantly I trailed my ocean colored orbs up to his warn face and upon making eye contact a bubble of bile speedily began to rise at the indecent look clearly visible in them; swallowing thickly I turned my head away unwilling to play any part in whatever sick fantasy was running through his head. "I expect this finished by dinner so you might want to get that tight little ass of yours moving."

"Are you serious?" Judging by the look on his face it was obvious that he was deadly so and at this validation a hollow laugh slipped past my lips. "Your brain must be more addled than I first thought if you think I'm even going to _touch_ your filthy clothes let alone wash them." Grabbing the handle of the green duffle I pushed up off the floor, shouldering the bag immediately upon righting. "Now if you don't mind I'm extremely busy." Without a farewell or any other word for that matter I moved forward brushed past Merle brusquely when he refused to get out of my way, I had just reached the exit arch when a large calloused hand wrapped itself tightly around the bicep of my right arm. "Get your hand off me." With a sharp tug I tried to pull myself free but this only made Merle tighten his grip further, probably to the point of bruising.

"Listen here you smart mouthed bitch, I've had just about enough of your crap." Side stepping deftly (which considering his hungover state was quite remarkable) he once again stood in front of me, the strong stench of cigarettes and stale beer abruptly washed over my senses as Merle leant forward getting right up in my face. "You might have the rest of this camp wrapped round your little finger coz your some fancy pants doctor...but that shit don't impress me baby so from now on your gonna do what I say, when I say it and without any complaint." Sapphire orbs blazed with anger as the realization of his words began to sink in, this pieces of shit must have some real balls if he thinks I'm just going to bow down at his feet and wordlessly answer his every beck and call.

"And why the hell would I do that?"

"Coz if you don't then I'm gonna have to go find myself someone who will," The smirk from earlier returned with a vengeance and all I could do was watch as his icy blue eyes skimmed around the inside of the tent pausing momentarily on Ashley's side of the small dwelling, swiftly he bent down and snatched up the single t-shirt that lay atop the inflated air mattress which Ash used to sleep on at night. "...and we both know who that'll be." After casting me a sidelong glance Merle slowly brought the pale blue tee up to his nose and inhaled deeply making the bile from before rise once again. In a flash I had the item of clothing out of his filthy hands, having the vile pig standing in our tent to begin with is bad enough but having him touch our belongings especially Ashley's is just disgusting; if clothing weren't such a hot commodity at present then you can sure as hell bet this top would soon be fuelling the fire...as it is the only thing I can too is give it a super good rinse once down at the water. Steeling my shoulders I straightened up to full height and glared up at the taller man, making it clear that his attempt at blackmail wasn't going to be accepted easily.

"I've made it perfectly clear what'll happen if you touch her again...you willing to take that chance?" My voice sounded strong but inside I was apprehensive; if he really wanted to the skilled hunter could easily take me out right here right now, nobody was close enough to stop him if he tried and although I could handle myself pretty well in a fight there's just no way I would be able to win against Merle...however much it pains me to admit.

"I'm shakin' in my boots." He finally replied after several moments of silence. My heart beat wildly within my chest as I watched he turn to exit the tent, just as the elder Dixons booted feet touched the earth outside his gravelly voice sounded once again. "You got till dark, otherwise I'll be making a woman outta your little friend before dawn." A harsh gasp ripped from my throat, he was truly serious even after my numerous warnings he's willing to risk everything...did he not take what I'm saying seriously? During the past month I had done things that I never would have even dreamed of in my previous life, seeing the majority of your family annihilated before your very eyes changes a person and if forced I'm readily prepared to do anything if it means keeping safe what little I have left of said family...but what about the consequences? Camp may not particularly like the rude redneck but that doesn't mean they would allow me kill him even if he did deserve it...and then there's Daryl to consider, could I willingly take from him the equivalent of what I myself was fighting so hard to protect. Merle was oblivious to my inner turmoil and just to rub a little extra salt in the wound he shot me a nasty smile, his cold eyes quickly scanning my frame. "Have a nice day short stack." And with that he was gone leaving me alone in the tent with my mind rapidly spinning in circles, in those initial moments after his departure the decision of what I had to do was clear. There's no way I can jeopardize our place here at camp, we have no transport and little supplies so in order to keep Ashley out of harm's way there is only one option...from this moment on I, Charlotte Ellis am Merle Dixon's bitch. God help me!

**~#~#~#~#~**

Do you want to know something I've learned over the past few weeks? Hand washing clothes...not fun, and you know what else neither is trudging up a steep hill in the late afternoon sun carrying a duffle loaded with freshly cleaned clothing in one hand and a rapidly degrading bin liner fit to burst in the other; thanks to the backwards hick I was forced to stay longer down at the creek then everyone else meaning that once _again_ I missed the car leading to the long trek back to camp on foot. Sighing loudly in frustration I dropped my bag down onto the floor before stomping past the group of women sat around the fire preparing dinner and across the clearing headed straight towards the shelter my new task master called home, I knew Merle wasn't inside because every day before dinner he disappeared off into the woods coming back a few hours later acting even more of a dick than usual if that's possible; people had their suspicions as to what he got up to out there alone and after today mine were confirmed thanks to the stupid idiot being incapable of checking the pockets of his trousers before giving them over to be washed. The opening to the tent was down but unzipped, believe it to be empty I stepped around the small flameless fire set just outside the entrance and reached forward to grab the motionless flap of material serving as the doorway; in one swift movement the thin sheet was up and over my head as I ducked inside the diminutive dwelling soundlessly...to my surprise the place wasn't as unoccupied as I thought.

Daryl's head snapped up instantly at my sudden and unannounced arrival, he was sat atop a moth-eaten dusty blue sleeping bag on the floor off to my right with his crossbow lying comfortably across his lap; the younger Dixon was clearly doing some routine maintenance on his weapon of choice as he held a dirty cloth in one hand and on the ground next to him there was a small pot filled with something that looked a lot like wax. Slowly my eyes trailed up from the tub and over the still silent man's body noting quickly the fact that he was currently shirtless (it's hot out and he's in the privacy of his own tent so why not? I mean he has every right); subtly I scanned the faintly tanned expanse of flesh before me, for someone who didn't look the type to work out he was very well build but not overly so with a strong chest and toned stomach. Wide blue orbs zeroed in on the letters inked into the skin of his left pec but before I could read exactly what it said the realization that my curious observation was quickly turning into perverted ogling hit me like a dump truck; feeling my face starting to flame I quickly turned away hoping the object of my embarrassment hadn't noticed the prolonged examination.

"You want somethin'?" He asked curtly before carelessly tossing the rag he'd been using off to the side.

"What? Ohh, no-no?" After shaking my head to clear the muddled thoughts running through it I turned back to the blue eyes man, keeping my eyes trained solely on his face. "Sorry...I didn't realize you were back." Not long after breakfast this morning he'd gone off into the forest with his trusty crossbow in hand on a mission to track down some much needed food, with the camp growing ever larger having someone with his skill was a god send and although squirrel may not be the best thing I've ever tasted it sure beats having beans and tinned veg every night.

"Not surprisin', cosiderin' you weren't around." His voice may have sounded casual but there was definitely a slight undertone of annoyance there and that really pissed me off, the guy hasn't spoken to me in seven days (not that I'm counting) and he just expects me to be hanging around like a little lost puppy waiting for him to come back...like hell is that ever going to happen!

"Well I apologize for not greeting you upon arrival oh mighty hunter but I've been really busy today." The anger inside of me was beginning to bubble more the longer I stayed around Daryl and his blank expression and narrowed eyes only served to build it, bringing forward the black trash bag held in my left hand I threw it down onto the other -and far messier- side of the tent. "There's your brothers stuff, I'd appreciate it if you could give it to him." Daryl's eyes narrowed even further as he suspiciously regarded the bin liner full of his brother's freshly cleaned clothing.

"What the hell you doin' with Merle's clothes?" The elder Dixon never said that I couldn't tell people the reason why I was suddenly being his little maid servant but it's probably best to assume that the no complaining rule extended to the other survivors as well as just himself; blowing a lock of raven hair out of my face in irritation I took a few seconds to calm down and think of a somewhat believable answer to the hunters question, after a long moment of silence and Daryl's persistent stare I spoke.

"I was going to the creek anyway so he asked if I could wash a few things for him while down there." His piercing blue eyes continued to burns holes into the side of my face making me grow increasingly uncomfortable, the blanketed quiet lasted only a few more minutes before he finally broke it.

"You honesty expect me to believe you'd do anythin' for him after all the shit he's pulled?" Forcing a tight lipped smile onto my face I turned ocean coloured orbs up to met his.

"What can I say...I'm just that nice a person." He scoffed faintly under his breath and then moved to carefully place the crossbow down beside him, I watched wordless while trying to think of a civil way to exit the tent without looking like a complete and total bitch.

"Merle's got something on you ain't he?" My silence and avoidance of eye contact must have been all the answer he needed, it didn't take a genius to figure out what the blackmailing bastard was using as leverage given the fact that in today's way of life there isn't much people have that's worth a whole lot. "It's the squirt right?" Choosing to ignore the nickname he'd used for Ashley I gave a small nod of conformation, earning a mumbled curse from the seated redneck.

"He said he'd leave her alone as long as I do some things for him."

"What kind a things?" Daryl asked roughly.

"I'm not sure, he never really went into detail." My whispered confession caused another harsh expletive to tumble from the sandy haired mans lips, he ran a hand over his face quickly stopping only briefly to rub tiredly at his clear blue eyes before returning them to me.

"Ain't doctors supposed to be smart? Even I know not to agree to somethin' without knowin' the terms." Okay so when you say it out loud like that it does sounds like one of the stupidest things anyone could agree to but when faced with the choice of protecting someone you love or protecting yourself the answer is clear.

"What else could I do?" I murmured softly. "There's only one other option and I doubt it'd go down well with the others...even it would help to lessen the stress in their lives." If Ashley's wellbeing means that I have to be subjected to spending my time with a no good waste of space then so be it because for her I would do anything...even if that includes pandering to Merle Dixons every sordid whim, bile bubbled at the mere thought of what the elder brother would have me do while in his service and it took all my willpower to keep it down and off of the tents floor. Daryl glared at me from his place on the ground, obviously understanding what would happen to the lone member of his family if I was made to choose door number two.

"You might wanna watch what you say, Merle may be a dick but he's still my brother." Reaching over to the pile of clothes dumped haphazardly at the end of his sleeping bag Daryl snatched up a green sleeveless shirt and slipped it on, giving me a good view of the small winged creature inked into the underside of his right bicep. "How long is he makin' you do this?"

"I don't know." He shook his head and started muttering again but I wasn't really listening as my eyes continued to watch the deftness of his fingers as they worked the fastenings of the khaki button-up; the sight was almost mesmerising and for some reason I just couldn't look away, it wasn't until the younger Dixon's hands stilled in their task that I finally pulled my gaze away. The realization that Daryl had caught me staring at him like a creeper caused a deep blush to spread across my cheeks as embarrassment started to engulf me, clearing my throat delicately I glanced over at the now fully clothed man from under my lashes. "I'm err, going to go...it's been a hard day and I could really do with getting some rest before dinner." Getting no response I figured it was back to the silent treatment so instead of bidding a polite goodbye to the stubborn hick I just turned and pushed aside the tents door flap fully intending to climb out, it wasn't until I was half way that I remembered the little _surprise_ I'd found while doing my manual labour; twisting around on the spot I reached into the front pocket of my jeans and pulled out the glass vial full of white powder. "Here." Daryl looked up from examining his hands at the sound of my voice, once I had his full attention I tossed the small container in his direction watching wordlessly as he expertly caught it; his furrowed brow immediately disappeared only to be replaced by an extremely peeved off expression once ocean blue eyes had zeroed in on item now lying in his open palm.

"Where'd you get this?" He questioned lowly.

"Where'd you think?" I regarded him for a moment, noting the flaming eyes, flared nostrils and clenched jaw. By the reaction it's clear to see that he had no clue what Merle had been getting up too, obviously the drug addiction wasn't breaking news to him but the fact that his brother was _still_ using especially now probably was. "Next time you might want to tell him to clean out his pockets because I don't what to have to touch that crap again." Without another word I ducked out of the small shelter and started towards my own tent in hopes of getting a little shut eye, before I'd moved completely out of earshot I heard Daryl's angry exclamation of _'Lyin' motherfucker!'..._along with about half of the other survivors. An almighty commotion sounded behind and just as I was turning to have a look a hand clamped down onto my upper arm, in exactly the same spot Merle had grabbed violently only a few hours prior; a pained hiss slipped from my lips at the sudden contact and almost as quickly as it had appeared the hand was gone. Looking back I found Daryl watching me with an unreadable expression on his face; without saying anything he stepped forward -eliminating any space between us- and reached forward, gently pushing down the shoulder of my oversized tee to expose the damaged flesh hidden beneath.

"Shit." Following the younger Dixon's line of sight I glanced down to find that his brother had left me a gift in the shape of a large ever darkening handprint, all four fingers were clear to see and with the thumb indent being almost black in colour it was obvious were he put the most pressure. Although nasty in appearance the bruising was nothing time, RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) and painkillers couldn't fix.

"It's not as bad as it looks." I stated matter-of-factly, gaining a look of pure disbelief from Daryl.

"Really...that your medical opinion?" The doubt in his voice was almost enough to make me roll my eyes, after ten years of training and practically another decade of hands-on experience I think I'm _just_ about qualified to diagnose and treat a minor case of superficial bruising. Flicking my eyes back up to his face I found that he had not yet looked away from the mass of colours adorning my arm, feeling slightly self conscious due to his unwavering gaze I swiftly pulled the sleeve of my top back up to once again shield the injury from view. We stood in silence next to the blue and white pick-up for what felt like a lifetime, in reality it must have been only about five minutes at max before Daryl did finally speak. "Merle won't be botherin' you or your niece again...you have my word on that."

"And that should reassure me, why?" I know I sound like a bitch but his words were totally unexpected, I thought that maybe he might have come to tell me to keep quiet about the crack or even to give me a load of his own washing since I was already doing his brothers...but never in a million years would I have guesses it'd be for this.

"Like I said before, she don't deserve to be hassled by some dumb ass drunk...and neither do you." He looked (dare I say it) a little embarrassed at having to explain the reasons for his good deed once again and it took a lot for me to fight the smile trying to make its way across my face; clearing his throat loudly Daryl turned his attention to the slightly bent wing mirror beside him. "I'll make sure he keeps his distance, but you should probably stay out of his way coz after today he's gonna be ragin' for a while." I watched with thinly veiled amused as he continued to fiddle with the fixture while trying to escape a conversation that was heading down a road the tall hillbilly wasn't at all comfortable with.

"I still don't truly understand why you're going to so much trouble to help us, but thank you." The urge to give him a hug was strong but seeing as neither of us would handle that well I stuck to just sending a kind smile his way instead. "Ashley's been through so much recently without adding a psycho redneck stalker into the mix...it'll be nice to have one less thing to worry about." The slight eye twitch at my use of words to describe his brother didn't go unnoticed but unlike before he didn't call me out on it making me think that maybe Merle had just pissed off his only ally in camp thanks to the hidden drugscapades out in the woods.

"You'll still need to watch yourselves...Merle ain't the only one around here you need to be careful of." I had a funny feeling that by that he was meaning Ed Peletier. I'd seen the looks Daryl would send his way sometimes, normally when the big ogre was shouting at his daughter on manhandling his wife; in those moments his whole body would tense up and his fists would clench so tightly that every knuckle would go white...if I had to I'd bet that those weren't the first times he's had to powerlessly sit by and watch as that horrible scene played out before him. Sometimes life's hardships can make a person or break them, in the case of Daryl Dixon it's clear that he's had his far share during the years but due to them he's become the man he is today and honestly I can say that he's a good one...despite all the stupid shit he does to try and make people think otherwise.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>**: First and foremost I would like to give a HUGE thanks to everyone that has reviewed/alerted/favorited this story, knowing that there are people out there enjoying it really does help to boost me when I hit a rough patch. Secondly I want to apologize for the super long delay, my brain has been making it so that I can't seem to focus on any one thing for more than 15 minutes at a time which as you can imagine is extremely frustrating; mainly because off this the next update won't be up for a few weeks at the least with the soul reason being that I haven't started writing it yet. Anyway this chapter is the longest to date so I hope it's been worth the wait and that you all enjoy it. :)**

**P.S- Sorry if there are any spelling mistakes or anything, it's 2:19am right know but I wanted to get this out as quickly as possible...so again I apologize. **


	5. Chapter Five: Part 1

**Disclaimer****: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

During our second full week in camp problems regarding the entire groups future survival began to surface. After the arrival of Shane and his friends our diminutive party of just twenty-one was suddenly boosted to a massive thirty-two; there are many advantages with having a larger number of people i.e. safety, more equal division of labour, bigger skills pool etcetera...but as with most things there are also some major drawbacks one of which is at the centre of camps latest fireside discussion.

"We're running low on supplies." Shane stated plainly with strong arms crossed firmly over his chest; since joining our little ragtag company exactly seven days ago the ex-police officer had quickly been propelled to the top of the survivor food chain by being giving the role of leader, maybe it's solely because of his previous profession as to why people have so much faith in him but personally I think it's because Shane's the first person (with half a brain) actually willing to take on the duty. As you can imagine -due to the bunch we have- not all members of the group were particularly happy with the change up of now having a cop in charge...namely Merle, what a shocker.

"No shit." Scoffed the aforementioned redneck. "Had to wipe my fuckin' ass with leaves this mornin' after I took a dump." An almost visible wave of disgust travelled around the group at the hicks blunt (and vulgar) words, the only one unaffected however was Daryl due wholly to the fact that he had no doubt been subjected to his brothers foul behaviour many a times before and was now just used to it.

"Charming." Andrea said quietly with her face scrunched up like she'd just smelt something rotten.

"Surprised he even bothers." I had to fight a grin at Jacqui's murmured comment and by the looks on some of the others campers faces it seemed I wasn't the only one, unfortunately the elder Dixon had also heard the dark skinned ladies remark and after glancing over at him briefly I found that he looked none too happy. With a dark gleam in his cold eyes Merle zeroed in on the shorter woman, but just as he opened his mouth to speak -probably something racist and derogatory I'm sure- Shane thankfully stepped forward effectively cutting off the hillbillies rant before it had chance to begin.

"Alright, settle down." Officer Walsh's dark coloured orbs flicked quickly between the lesser offenders before finally resting on Merle making it clear who he was really talking to, the older man's jaw clenched tight and his eyes once again flared in anger but to all our surprises he remained silent and moved back next to his brother. "Thank you, now can we get back on track please?" With no objections Shane continued. "Like I was sayin' before, our supplies are real low and with such a large group that's a big problem. We're almost out of canned foods, with whats left probably only lastin' us all till the end of the week maybe the middle of the next if we ration some more...and even without Merle's earlier input I'm sure ya'll have noticed we're startin' to have a few hygiene issues also."

"A few? If we don't do something soon then the trees around here are going to be as bare as our food stores."

"I realise that Dale." Shane stated before running a work roughened hand over his tired face. Removing my cerulean gaze from our dark haired leader I turned towards the bearded rifleman who had previously spoken, with his trademark hat atop his head Dale sat watching the stressed copper closely from his place perched on the edge of one of the logs surrounding the low burning fire. Much like our new commanding officer Mr Horvath had also taken on a role of sorts within the group but in his case it was more of the patriarchal figure that's there to guide and help anybody in need of it; from the first day he'd been there for me and Ash which is one of reason why I believe that along with the kids, Amy and Andrea his friendly attitude and calm demeanour are gradually helping to bring back the bubbly teen my niece had once been.

"So what's the plan?" Glenn asked, fiddling nervously with the warn red baseball cap held firmly between his hands. "You have one right?" This question gained the attention of almost ever camp member which in turn led to over two dozen pairs of eye being placed onto the man in charge, a low groan of frustration escaped his dry lips before he finally spoke.

"Plannin' for situations like these weren't exactly in my trainin' but it don't take a genius to recognize that there ain't many options left, so honesty I can only see one solution...we'll have to send a group into the city." Several surprised gasps sounded around the fire at this revelation but to most it wasn't that much of a shock, I mean honestly what did they think was going to happen? Out of everybody one person seemed the most affected by the ex-officers words and she happened to be standing right next to him.

"Are you insane? That place is crawling with those...things." Lori's voice was thick with emotion as she stared up with large brown eyes at the man to her right, you could tell by the slight shakiness of the tone that she was trying extremely hard to keep what little composure she had left intact; although the tall lady was quickly making friends outside of her small inner circle I noticed that when given a choice she did tend to stick closer to Shane than anybody else...besides Carl of cause.

"I know, but unless you got an alternative there's nothin' else I can do."

"Shane going back there is suicide." With shinning eyes Lori continued to gaze at the dark haired man, silently pleading with him to just stay here and forget about leaving; he looked down at her with an unreadable expression on his face and I for one began to feel slightly awkward watching the wordless exchange between the two.

"Not necessarily." He replied softly. After another long moment of quiet Shane reached forward, brushing a loose strand of chestnut hair back behind Lori's ear before offering a small half smile in way of reassurance; the slight show of PDA would usually have been more than enough to get tongues wagging around here but considering the current crisis the duos act managed to slip under the radar of the majority of the group. Clearly the elder Dixon had had enough of all the lovey-dovey crap because without any warning the hick took a hefty swig from the near empty bottle of whisky (which seemed to be glued to his hand recently) pausing only briefly to savour the taste before suddenly spitting the dark liquid into the fire pit located a little ways in front of his feet, the addition of the extremely potent alcohol fed the small flames causing them to momentarily burn bigger and brighter; the unexpected burst made a few of my fellow survivors step back in surprise and going by the satisfied smirk on Merle's weathered face that is what was intended. With their intimate moment now over Shane turned back to the group but this time instead of addressing us all his gaze zeroed in on one lone camper, I watched the ex-officer for a beat longer before following his line of sight...which led straight to a very nervous looking Glenn. It was at that moment when Shane's words from earlier came back to the forefront of my mind and slowly the pieces began to come together, I obviously wasn't the only one to get the gist of our fearless leaders master plan if the younger mans uneasy appearance was anything to go by.

"Dude." The ex-pizza boy whined, once again twisting the cap in his hands but this time with more force. "Seriously?"

"You helped us out before man, and I've heard talk around camp that you've made supply runs into the city already." By the look in the Koreans dark eyes he was having a serious mental debate on whether to make a run for it or stick around and listen, honestly the risks are probably just as bad either way. "Look, I know I ain't got no place askin' you this but it would really help having someone along who knows the layout." Officer Walsh stepped forward, his chocolate coloured orbs still firmly locked on the shorter man; it may not have been ment as an intimidating action but with his unwavering expression and imposing build Shane majorly dwarfed Glenn causing him to shrink back and away to regain some of the lost personal space. Silence swiftly descended over the group but with the pointed looks being sent the black haired boys way by more than half the campers it was clear even without words what they wanted him to do; I watched from my position on the outer rim of the assembly as Glenn curiously observed everyone, his eyes jumping rapidly from one person to another...before long the unspoken pleas became too much for the kind hearted Korean.

"Alright!" He exclaimed loudly "Alright, I'll go" A harsh puff of air escaped Glenn's lips as he angrily slammed the now rumpled red cap onto his head, nobody uttered a single sounds and just continued to watch as the young man began pacing around just outside of the circle our mass of bodies had created; a permanent line had almost been etched into the dirt floor by the black sneakers casing his feet when suddenly he came to an abrupt halt and spun around. "There's one condition." As (unofficially elected) camp leader negotiating terms fell to Shane and with a wordless nod the dark haired cop motioned for Glenn to carry on. "If I'm doing this, I'm doing it alone...it's safer that way." Another round of hushed gasps sounded around the fire but this time it was hard to decipher if they were out of shock due to the young kids gallant offer or from relief that they themselves didn't have to go.

"You sure?" Wide cerulean eyes shot straight to the head honcho, disbelief shining in there depths as clear as the sun in the sky. There's no way he can possibly be considering this? I watched in stunned silence as Glenn gave a curt nod of conformation. "Well alright." Without another word Shane closed the remaining distance between himself and the once again pacing pizza boy, clamping a large hand down onto the younger's shoulder stopped the anxious movement immediately and then the pair began discussing the finer points of this afternoons city run; as the meeting seemed to be over the group slowly started to dissipate with everyone going their separate ways to continue on with whatever job they were doing before Shane called us all together.

I remained frozen in place -with eyes wide and jaw slack- unable to comprehend what had just happened. When Glenn had done his first run I for one wasn't too impressed with the idea of having him go off alone in the walker infested capital to gather food for us all while we just hung back chilling in our relative safety, if it hadn't been for the young guys words of reassurance that he was cool with it and would be in and out of the place in no time then I definitely would have voiced my concerns... however this time my new friend wasn't exactly volunteering out of his own free will was he? The world may have gone to hell but in my book manipulating someone (however supply done) to do something that they didn't want to is just not right and if nobody else is willing to speak up and say something about it then I sure as hell will because my parents raised me to stand up for what I believe in and for those that I care about. Glancing around I spotted the still conversing duo standing not too far away in the shade created by the awning of Dale's winnebago, marching forward I gracefully dodged the few people who had hung back and quickly made my way over to the RV.

"I'm sorry, but am I the only one here not comfortable with this?" My incredulous tone of voice and determined stride was enough to grab the attention of not only my intended targets but also most of the groups as well, coming to a stop besides Glenn I turned my ocean coloured orbs on Officer Walsh who in turn was watching me with hands on hips and a furrowed brow. "Putting the responsibility of providing for the entire camp onto one man's shoulders is selfish and wrong, we're supposed to working together not delegating the less desirable tasks off onto one person...even with that put aside this whole thing is too damn dangerous." After brushing a loose strand of raven hair out of my face I continued. "Glenn only just went out into the city a few days ago, going back in again so quickly is a mistake...these things might be slow but I don't believe they're as stupid as we might think." Through my peripheral vision I could see that those who had been supply eyeing the exchange from afar had now stopped whatever they were doing and completely turned around to watch the scene currently playing out before them unashamedly.

"Then what do you suggest doctor?" Shane crossed well muscled arms over his chest as he regarded me through narrowed eyes. "Got any better ideas." The ex-police officers contemptuous tone did nothing to quell the simmering rage beginning to bubble inside of me, this slow burning anger wasn't helped to diminish at all because at the moment the camp drunk decided to throw in his two (unwanted) cents.

"Yeah baby, come on and share a few more pearls of wisdom." I shot a scathing glare over my shoulder at the smug hick who was casually lounging against Daryl's bike puffing away on one of the last remain cigarettes he had left while said sibling knelt on the ground beside the magnificent machine fiddling with some doodad or another with his head down trying (and failing) to look like he wasn't listening; Merle caught my gaze with his icy orbs and winked, not wanting to encourage -or look at- him further I narrowed my baby blue as far as they could go without being closed before returning to the conversation at hand. Since giving away what was left of my sleeping tablets to Lori I had been spending most nights lying awake with only myself and the occasional insect for company, the only plus that comes with not being about to sleep is the peace and quiet offered by the night...it's the perfect time to think and for a while now an idea concerning a possible safer method of gathering supplies had been floating around in my head. With almost everyone's eyes trained solely on my slender form I sucked in a deep breath to calm my nerves and then took the plunge, silently praying that it would help to get Glenn out of having to venture solo into the city of the walking dead.

"What about houses?" Complete and total silence was the initial response that greeted my suggestion; surveying the surrounding area I noted many different expressions set upon the features of my campmates raging from mild confusion all the way to utter disbelief, their reactions weren't exactly unexpected given the fact that I had yet to fully explain my plan.

"What about them?" Moving cerulean orbs back to the two males stood before me I found Officer Walsh watching closely.

"Before our car broke down in the woods back when we first ran into you guys, Ashley and I had past several abandoned houses not-"

"Get ta the point princess." It's amazing the amount of negative emotions that can raise within a person courtesy of just the mere voice of their enemy...ignoring the mouthy hillbilly I exhaled quietly and mentally counted to ten before continuing.

"In the midst of an evacuation during all that stress and panic do you really think most people are going to be worrying about packing toilet paper and toothpaste? The broadcast which aired before the radios went down said for people to grab only what was needed to make the journey to the closest shelter...I know raiding people's empty homes isn't the nicest or most morally right thing to do, but imagine all the supplies those families unknowingly left behind." With a tense silence hanging heavily in the air I hesitantly began fiddling with hem of my black cami, the lack of response was incredibly unnerving and as time passed without a word I began having second thoughts about the whole thing; it was in that moment of uncertainty that a voice I hadn't heard in a long time sounded in my mind _'Listen to your heart above all other voices sweet-pea and don't for one second let anybody make you doubt what you're feeling in their'_...with those words of encouragement ringing loudly in my ears I took one final shot at getting the group to see the potential my proposition could offer. "It may just be a shot in the dark, for all I know other survivors might have already had the same idea and the buildings are stripped clean...but considering the payoff if I am right, don't you think it's at least worth checking out?" Dropping the fraying material from between my fingers I stood straight to show my resolve on the matter and just watched as those around me shared wordless -but knowing- looks with each other; the hush which had enveloped the camp site was finally broken when Shane stepped forward, the expression on his face a lot softer and more understanding than it had been previously.

"I can see where your comin' from here doc, but what makes this any less dangerous than goin' into the city?" Before answering I gave a soft sigh and quickly wiped away a bead of sweat that had begun to slowly trial down the side of my neck.

"Look I'm not psychic okay, I can't make any guarantees...but the chances of there being as many walkers in a deserted cul-de-sac as there are in downtown Atlanta are pretty slim."

"She argues a good point." Looking over towards the open door of the RV my eyes locked with those of the camps voice of reason Dale Horvath, he stood in the entryway hat in hand and rifle resting against the cabinet beside him.

"I agree." Andrea said from her place sat on the caravans bottom step, the blondes sudden input into the debate was quite surprising as she had been uncharacteristically quiet throughout the entire earlier conversation. "There has to be some stuff worth salvaging regardless." Shane eyed the two for a moment as he silently weighed up the possible options, with frustration plastered clear as day over his face the ex-officer hastily ran a hand through his short dark curls before turning back to face the younger man who still stood beside him.

"What do you think?" He earnestly asked the one time pizza boy. "Given as it's your ass on the line otherwise, I think it only right you get a say in the matter." All eyes were now on the man of the hour as everyone watched and waited for him to give his opinion, off to the side looking awkward and maybe even a little embarrassed by all the attention Glenn stood scuffing his beat up sneakers across the ground wordlessly working through the choices in his head...after a few moments with only the low crackle of the fire filling the air the kid finally spoke.

"Can't be any worst than the alternative." Raising his head and catching my eye, he offered up a small half smile. "I'd be willing to give it a shot."

"Me too." The surprise addition of another voice was enough to gain the whole camps attention. Spinning round my eyes came to rest on the form of Morales who stood tall and proud next to his worried looking wife Miranda and their two children, like Glenn had done only moments before the dark haired man shot me a smile to show that he was fully behind my idea. "Charlotte's right, it's about time some of us started taking responsibility of our own survival." I watched as the married couple shared one of those looks that held an entire silent conversation with just a single glance, its during terrible times like these that you realise just how much relationships with loved ones really mean; it makes me even more grateful to have Ashley at my side now because a lot of people don't have that established bond to fall back on when things get tough...honestly if it wasn't for my beautiful niece I probably would have given up a long time ago.

"I'm still don't know about this." Officer Walsh murmured softly. "It's one thing havin' someone scout an area their familiar with but sendin' you two out into the unknown...that's a big risk."

"Three." I stated firmly. "It's my idea, I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't go." Many shocked faces littered the area, most of them belonging to men; I don't truly know the reason for their mystified expressions but I could probably take a good guess...even at the end of the world sexism knows no bounds. Before I could say anything else that damn redneck thorn in my side struck again.

"Well hallelujah! We're saved thanks ta a gook, boarder-bunny here and a god damn pair a tits." That's it! I can put up with a lot really I can, but there is only so much of Merle Dixon's shit that one person can deal with before hitting boiling point.

"I don't see you volunteering." The slimy smirk which usually adorned his face slowly disappeared as cold blue eyes that looked ready to fire lasers at any minute zeroed in me.

"That's coz I already done my fair share of shit 'round here, hell I only just went huntin' yesterday." Merle pushed himself to his feet -wobbling unsteadily for a moment before fully stabilizing thanks to a hand on Daryl's shoulder- it was clear to all that the hick was pissed...and in more ways than one. "There ain't no way I'm puttin' my ass on the line for the likes a you half breeds." His icy orbs rapidly flicked from Glenn to Morales and then some of the other none caucasian members of the group before finally coming back to me, it was pretty obvious that in his twisted mind if you sided with the enemy you were the enemy which is probably why I was getting the full force of Mr Dixon's stink eye; after casting the group one last glowering look Merle stomped off back to his tent leaving the rest of us in stunned silence.

"So..." Glenn started cautiously after several minutes of awkward quiet. "When do we leave?"

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>**: I am so, so, so, so sorry for the heinously long wait which you have been forced to endure before getting this chapter, there are no excuses to explain the delay other than I've been having a real hard time getting my thoughts out so that they sound as good on paper (or computer screen) as they do in my mind. As you can see this is part one of chapter five, normally I prefer to do longer chapters but since its nearly 3 months since I last updated I decided to spilt up this latest one -which is still to be completely finished- so that you can read the bit that I have done without having to wait any longer. Anyway hope it was worth the delay and that you guys enjoy it, I'll try my hardest to get the next bit out before Christmas ;)**

**P.S. Please review! I know I don't deserve it but reading your feedback really does brighten my day and always brings a smile to my face...also it happens to be my birthday on Thursday, but you know whatever :) **


	6. Chapter Five: Part 2

**Disclaimer****: I do not own **_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

While going over the details it was decided that for mine, Glenn and Morales' safety it would be better if we were accompanied on this little expedition by a few other survivors so that we had a good sized (but not to large) group just encase we ran into any trouble; big boss man Officer Walsh was the first to step up for the challenge much to Mrs Grimes dismay, I don't know if it was because he felt guilty about pushing the young Korean earlier of if he just thought it part of his duty as leader to go with us but for whatever reason I for one was extremely happy to have someone of his calibre tagging along as it gave me a stronger sense of security and a better chance of actually coming back. The biggest surprise of the afternoon however came courtesy of one Mr Daryl Dixon when he voiced his desire to join our outing, Shane seemed sceptical about having him come along with us but once the sandy haired hunter stated the fact that unless we intended to walk the whole way there we would need some form of transportation the ex-officer began to have a rethink...as luck should have it our resident redneck was in possession of a nice big pickup which in the event of our group happening across a good load of supplies could turn out to be incredibly usefully; after considering all the options Shane reluctantly agreed to let Daryl come but only on the conditions that he kept his anger in check and agreed to play by the rules. Once the debrief was done and dusted we were given 30 minutes to ready ourselves and gather any essentials needed for the trip, then we'd be heading out into the unknown in search of supplies.

The summer days here in Georgia were still hot as hell and never being much of a sun worshipper myself I was finding it quite hard to adjust, how people used to function and go about their daily lives in this weather was beyond me because I'd gladly take a snowy New York winter over this obnoxious heat any day. Exhaling loudly in exasperation I swiped away the annoying strand of raven hair which continued to fall into my face for what felt like the thousandth time that day...Jesus I'd give anything for an alice band right about now. Blowing a frustrated sigh out through slightly chapped lips I turned back to finish the task at hand, if we planned to bringing back any of the stuff we'd hopefully find then a means of carrying said goods would be needed which is why at present I'm on hands and knees sorting through mine and Ashley's extra duffle; thankfully all the garments inside were clean and folded so it took no time at all to transport the small piles of clothing to their temporary home on the tent floor.

"So you're really going?" A voice stated softly from somewhere behind me; shooting a quick look over my shoulder ocean blue eyes instantly zeroed in on the slim figure stood awkwardly in the tents entryway. Wordlessly the dark haired teen surveyed the tent her dark orbs pausing only briefly on the now empty bag in my hands the mini arsenal of weapons laying prepped and ready on the bed beside me, once finished Ashley returned her gaze to the front and openly stared at me with her big brown eyes; though she remained silent it was clear to see even without the tightly balled fists and quivering lips that the young girl was fighting extremely hard to keep herself together. Although this conversation was inevitable it didn't really make it any easier to begin, during the camp discussion earlier this morning Ash and Amy had been absent as they were once again given the task to watching the younger kids while the elder members of the group talked shop, sometimes I wonder if the pair ever get annoyed by the fact that they get treated like children by most of the other survivors even though they are both actually young women? Anyway as I was saying they had not been present at the meeting and instead were huddled away in the RV playing cards or I-spy or something, since the fire pit where we had gathered to converse was out of hearing range of the winnebago it must not have been until I had confronted Shane out front by the steps that the girls had heard what was going on.

As the silent exchange continued my eyes trailed down Ash's form stopping on the scene of her small hands slowly uncurling from balled fists only to move on to clutching the already creased material of the white and orange striped tee she was wearing straining the fabric to the point of almost tearing...it was in that moment that I began to think that maybe I hadn't put as much planning into this whole thing as I had originally though because it seemed that in my hurry to find a solution to the groups supply problem I had overlooked the effect it would have on the most important person in my life. The tent fell completely silent as I mulled this over in my head but just like before the voice which now belonged to nothing but a memory sounded its encouragement once again and even though leaving her here without my protection was going to be hard I knew in my heart that what I was doing was for the greater good and our future survival. After taking a moment to build my courage and gather my strength I finally turned around to fully face Ash, silently praying to anybody listening that she would understand why it was that I had to do this.

"I have too." The vast array of emotions that passed over her youthful face at those three words was unbelievable and that only served to build the burning guilt already bubbling in the pit of my stomach, it wasn't until a lone tear broke free and gradually began trailing down her smooth cheek that my heart clenched painfully...never before had I seen my niece looking so completely and utterly defeated. The hush that had descended over our small abode was quickly becoming more than I could bare but just as I was about to break the tense silence Ashley finally found her voice and after taking a deep breath she spoke.

"No...no, they could do it without you." Before stepping inside the tent the young girl quickly wiped away the thin trickle of water which had escaped her shining chocolate eyes, it was obvious by her rigid stance that she was trying to be strong but the shakiness in her voice unfortunately betrayed her; I continued to watch from my place on the floor as the teen began to pace the small space we now occupied. "If you're feeling pressured by the others because it was your idea then I co-could pretend to be sick, that way you'd be allowed to stay back and look after me...or-or maybe-."

"Ashley." My firm tone got her attention and immediately put a stop to the frantic rambling; since this world wide epidemic had struck the young brunettes behaviour had been progressively shifting as she started retreating into herself shutting out not only the bad things surrounding her but also me as well, recently I thought that she was getting better with thanks to some of the other survivors persistent and friendly attitudes but seeing her now in such a state that worry was back with a vengeance. I pushed myself off the floor in one fluid movement, brushing a hand over my jeans quickly in the process -to rid them of the dust they had undoubtedly collected- before returning baby blues to the front. Ash watched me through watery eyes, her bare arms now tightly crossed over her belly in a protective manner; since the start we had not been parted for even a minute which is probably a major factor in the reason why she's acting this way and it's down to me to reassure her that nothing bad is going to happen just because we're apart. "Everything is going to be okay...I'll be fine, we'll all be fine."

"You can't promise that." She stated bluntly and if the steady streams running down her face were anything to go by the earlier resolve she displayed was now well and truly gone; I wanted to argue that that wasn't true but honestly I couldn't because then I would be lying to her and that is one thing I wouldn't do, now or ever. "Don't go with them Charlie... ...please." Tears freely fell as the young girls voice cracked under the shear amount of emotion swirling inside her petite body, knowing that this was effecting her in such a way was bad enough but actually seeing it written so blatantly across her features was something else entirely.

"Come here." Not needing to be asked twice Ashley came barrelling towards me, her arms wrapping around my midsection in a tight embrace just as soon as I was within reach; she was searching for support and reassurance and as her only source I was more than willing to give it to her in any way possible. Slipping check shirt covered arms round slim shoulders I pulled her closer so that my head now rested atop her own. "I know that you're scared and worried about this whole thing honey, and I can understand why completely...but that doesn't change the fact that it _needs_ to be done before we find ourselves in even more trouble." Sighing softly I started to run a hand up and down my nieces back in hopes of giving her even a small nugget of comfort. "Believe me Ash, I'm not exactly buzzing with excitement here myself." Her body instantly tensed at my words but before I could say anything further she had pushed herself out of my grip and taken a step back, the girls dark orbs which had previously been glazed with tears were now flaming in newly stoked anger as she glared at me hotly.

"Then why are you going!" She yelled fiercely. "It's obvious you don't want too."

"And you think the other guys do?" I all but screamed back at her. "Given the option none of us would be doing this but unfortunately we don't have that luxury." My voice had risen to a level which was rarely used and the shocked look on Ashley's face was evidence of that, I used to pride myself on being a very patient person but since this nightmare had begun I've been finding it harder and harder to keep my tolerance in check when being faced with difficult situations. "I'm sorry." Exhaling loudly I quickly swiped a hand across my face, the almost sleepless nights really weren't helping any with my moods either and if something didn't change soon then there is a hell of a chance that I'll snap...and most likely at the wrong person; returning ocean blue eyes to Ashley I stepped forward and when she didn't shy away at my movement I took the chance and pulled her back in for another hug. "You know I wouldn't leave unless it was necessary right?" There was stony silence for a moment making me think that she was still angry but before I could dwell on those thoughts Ash snaked her arms around me and gave a tight squeeze, conveying without words that she now fully understood why I was doing this and that I had her permission.

"I know." The teen breathed out before laying her head on my shoulder and sighing quietly. "Doesn't mean I have to like it though." A small but sad smile slowly spread across my lips as I drew Ashley closer still and pressed my cheek into her beautifully soft hair.

"Me either babe." We stayed holding each other in the middle of our moderate sized tent for a good long while; both of us feeding off of the others energy and absorbing that comfort, strength and love that we both so greatly needed right now. I honestly couldn't tell you how long we stood there because during that time I was about as close to being at peace as you could get nowadays and the moment just became a blur of tranquillity, it wasn't until I heard someone calling my name that I was pulled back to reality with a sharp and unwanted tug.

"Charlotte?" I lifted my head just in time to see Glenn pop his round the corner, the poor kid realized straight away that he had interrupted a family bonding moment and turned to leave but before he even took a step I caught his gaze and silently gestured for him to stay; after one last squeeze Ash and I separated and then moved our eyes to the figure stood uncomfortably in the doorway. The young Korean gave a sheepish smile as his dark orbs swiftly flicked between us, he was clearly feeling uneasy about something that much was obvious thanks to his body language and constantly shuffling from one foot to the other; most likely it's our upcoming mission that has the guy on edge and understandably so going out into the world in its current state isn't exactly gonna be shits and giggles now is it? Several wordless minutes passed with just the three of us staring at each other, it wasn't until I delicately cleared my throat in a polite means of telling him to get on with it that the ex pizza boy finally decided to spill the beans on the reason for his unexpected visit. "Hey..urrr, sorry. I just thought you'd want to know that the rest of us are set and the trucks all loaded up, so whenever you're ready we can head out." Ashley's body tensed again at the reminder of what was happening and although time was of the essence I felt it necessary to take a little more time so that I was one hundred percent sure that the teen was fully understanding and on board with what I was about to go and do.

"Alright, I'll be out in a minute. Thanks Glenn."

"No problem." Shooting a small smile in his direction I watched as the young guy returned my friendly gesture and then gave a curt nod of conformation before proceeding to slip silently out of the tent, at his departure we were once again left to fall into silence but this time it was more of a stalling tactic than anything else; concerned sapphire orbs eyed the dark haired girl and upon seeing her tiny frame begin to shake I knew it was time to end this conversation before she started on the defence again...the sooner our little posse set out the sooner we'd be back and hopefully with a good haul of stuff to boot.

"Looks like it's time for me to go." I stated softly, Ashley said nothing in reply but gave a small nod as she turned away to face the ground; turning round fully I reached out cautiously and gently cuffed her under the chin so that she was once again looking at me instead of the floor. "Hey, hey, no more tears." Placing a hand on either cheek I carefully used my thumbs to brush away the remaining traces of the watery tracks that stained her skin, once that task had been completed I tenderly smoothed back a tendril of dark hair which had come loose of its ponytail and become stuck to the side of her face. "I won't be gone long I promise...but while I'm away you have to stay strong for me alright? I need you to put on your game face and show everyone out there just how brave Ellis women really are." She watched me intently for a few beats before finally giving another wordless nod, at her show of acceptance -however reluctant- I gave a warm smile which was returned by my niece after a playful jab to the side. "There we go." It was obvious that Ashley's was forced but at least it was slight progress. Dropping my hands from her face I spun around and quickly scooped up the empty duffle from the floor, with the bag now in hand I crossed the small distance to my bed and crouched down beside it. Since this mission was taking us into the unknown our safely was top priority making weapons a must, with that in mind I picked up both the baseball bat and the shotgun (my back-up firearm) and put them inside carefully; leaving the young girl without any protection was not an option and for the first time ever I was relieved that my father had taken it upon himself to teach her how to use the gun she now carried around in her backpack. Next to go in was a travel size first aid kit which was only being brought along encase of an emergency, with a quick glance over what remained on the bed in front of me I found that nothing more that was left there needed to be put inside and so with one quick movement the duffle was once again sealed; blowing out a puff of air I pushed up off the floor and shouldered the khaki coloured carrier. "Come on then, don't want to keep the boss man waiting."

"Yeah, wouldn't want that now would we." Ashley murmured bitterly while watching me pluck the semi automatic pistol from atop the cot and then reach around behind me to slip the trusty handgun between the small of my back and the waist band of my jeans; just as an added safety measure I also had a blade hidden away in the inside my boot. Once a quick mental run down of my supplies had been finished I turned to face Ash and found her staring pointedly at me with her arms crossed firmly over her chest in a defiant stance, it was scary how much she looked like her mother in that moment...I almost had to pinch myself just to make sure that I hadn't somehow gone back in time because the dark haired teen honestly was the spitting image of Lacey when she was that age and sulking after not getting her way.

"Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit my dear." I said jokily once my mind was back in the present day.

"It's also the only way to vent without yelling or whining so unless you want me doing that again then I guess you're just going to have to deal with it." After shooting a mocking smile in my direction the little spitfire whirled around and exited our humble abode without another word...well hello sassy! The girl really was channelling her mother today; chuckling faintly under my breath a promptly started after her and in a few strides we were walking side by side. The camp was buzzing with activity by the time we reached the main communal area with people milling about everywhere either chatting amongst themselves or doing their daily chores, not everyone was making themselves useful however because as per usual both Ed and Merle were sat on the lazy asses smoking cigarettes on opposite side of the settlement; it's funny with them both being such a-holes and having so much in common you'd think the pair would be friends but just like his brother the elder Dixon seemed to have an aversion to Mr Peletier. As we strode further into camp several heads turned to watch our progress and one of them happened to be the leader of today's away mission, the ex-officer pushed himself away from the side of the pick-up where he had previously been standing conversing with Morales and then began forward meeting Ashley and I at the fire pit where we had stopped.

"So you ready doc?" He asked politely.

"As I'll every be."

"Alright then, let's move out." Giving a curt nod Shane straightened up and readjust the weapon balanced on his shoulder before turning and walking back the way he had just come. I watched wordlessly (and with a frown creasing my brow) as the copper shot just a passing comment into the truck's cab where Daryl sat tapping the steering wheel, without even letting the sandy haired hunter reply Shane carried on round to the bed of the truck where both Morales and Glenn were located; my cerulean eyes narrowed in irritation at that blatant act of rudeness...okay so maybe the younger Dixon isn't exactly the most polite and well mannered guy around but that doesn't justify him getting treated like a piece of crap especially when he's just volunteered to help out with a supply run that he hadn't even been asked to do. Seeing them all gearing themselves up reminded me that we had a job to do and standing around here like an idiot wasn't going to help so with a reluctant heart I readied myself to say one of the hardest goodbyes of my life; Ashley stood by my side with darks orbs downcast and thin arms wrapped around her tiny frame, the teen had a tight lipped expression set on her face making it obvious that she fighting back tears once again.

"It's game time." Stepping forward I slung my free arm around her shoulders and pulled the emotional girl in for a hopefully reassuring half hug. "I'll only be gone an hour, two at most...it'll probably be over so fast you won't even have time to notice I'm gone." Pressing a quick kiss to her temple I moved back so that we were looking at each other eye to eye. "Promise me you'll stay out of trouble, I've got enough to worry about without constantly wondering what you're doing up here." The two of us remained locked in a silent stare off for a few minutes before Ashley finally gave in and whispered _'I promise'_; smiling warmly I bent down to drop another kiss but this time to her forehead, as I was returning to full height the presence of others close by could be felt at my back.

"We'll make sure she doesn't get into any mischief while your away." Glancing over I found that the two blonde sisters had made their way over and were now just a few paces away, Andrea sent over a small friendly smile as she had been the one to speak while Amy just quietly crossed the distance between herself and Ashley and then went about pulling her in for a hug much like I had done moments before; it may not have been a massive thing but the tiniest hint of a grin came to my nieces face at the kind gesture given to her by the young blonde and that in itself was enough to made me feel that little bit more comfortable with letting her say while I was gone.

"Thank you." Before anything else could be said a piercing whistle sounded around the camp gaining almost every survivors attention, turning towards the noise my bright blue orbs instantly zeroed in on the man glaring daggers at me with his head stuck out of the truck window.

"Move your ass woman! We're burnin' daylight here." With that said -or more like shouted- he disappeared back inside the cab. Shaking my head in disbelief I moved my gaze back to the three people stood beside me, the fair haired sisters must have sensed that Ashley and I needed a minute to ourselves because after giving small smiles of understanding the pair tactfully stepped off to the side so that we had a little more privacy.

"I guess with that oh so subtle hint I better get moving." The young teen gave a slight nod, her dark watery eyes locked solely on my face; reaching forward I took a hold of one of her shaking hands and gave a strong squeeze. "I'll see you later honey, just stick with Andrea and Amy and _away_ for Merle Dixon and everything will be fine." She cast a sidelong look towards said hick who was still sat lounging around outside his tent not that far away before returning her gaze to the front; Daryl may have done good on his word to keep his brother away but the still didn't make me feel any better about leaving Ashley in camp with him.

"Be careful." The dark haired girl murmured gently.

"Always am." After pushing the strap of the green duffle back up onto my shoulder I bent forward and placed one last kiss onto the top of Ashley's head. "Love you baby-girl." Knowing that this was just going to get even harder for her the longer I dragged it out I spun round on my heels without another word and began the short journey over to the dusty blue and white pick-up, it didn't take long to reach the stationary vehicle but once I had arrived I was faced with the predicament of where I was going to sit. Glancing into the open bed I found that it was already full with Shane, Glenn and Morales all already hunkered down in there each with an empty bag laying in their laps; it seemed that none of the three gentlemen wanted to be stuck in the small cramped cab with Daryl leaving it down to little old me to have that pleasure. Blowing out a frustrated sigh I silently rounded the front of the truck and moved to the passenger side; just as I was about to open the door my eyes briefly met those of the young Korean, he gave an apologetic smile at my predicament before turning his head away. With a forceful tug the door creaked open and after slipping the bag off my shoulder and tossing it onto the middle of the bench seat I grabbed a hold of the doors metal frame and heaved myself up and inside; the younger Dixon brother had been anxiously chewing on his thumb nail but stopped as soon as I climbed in, cool blue eyes regarded me guardedly for a moment before the man they belonged to straightening himself and started the truck all in one fluid movement.

"'Bout damn time." He muttered (not so quietly) under his breath, I rolled my eyes at his petulant tone and just turned to look out of the window as he wordlessly shifted the truck into gear and started off down the dirt track that lead out of camp and back onto one of the main roads. A blanket of tense silence quickly descended over us and I shuffled uncomfortably in my seat, the sound of muffled voices floated in through the slightly open dividing screen and I found myself suddenly wishing that I was back there with them instead of stuck in here with the silent hillbilly. Risking a sneaky peek I observed Daryl slyly from under my lashes; he sat with his back poker straight and both work roughen hands tightly clenching the wheel, a stern expression was also set on his face and the man's thin lips were pursed together firmly making it pretty clear that he wasn't going to be saying anything any time soon...leaning my head against the dirty pane of glass serving as a window I watched the scenery blur pass and decided to just settle in for what was sure to be a lovely _quiet_ drive.

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note<strong>**: Well here is part two! I hope you enjoy and once again sorry for the long wait. **

**Thank you to everyone that has reviewed/alerted/favorited this story it really does mean a lot and last but by no means least I'd like to give a special thanks to Nelle07, Aku15 and Azalia Fox Knightling for reviewing the last chapter :) you guys rock. **


	7. Chapter Six

_**Hello everyone :) A billion apologizes for the horrendously long delay I wish I had a better excuse then just writers block but alas I do not, please don't think that I've given up on this story because honestly nothing could be further from the truth. Anyway for those still interested here is the long awaited chapter 6, I made it the longest to date so I hope you enjoy and I promise that as you read I'll be working on the next update. **_

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer: I do not own <strong>_**The Walking Dead**_** in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic, Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

With the help of the old crumpled map I had been using for the weeks prior to joining camp we were able to back track the route my father had penned until we came across the small cluster of houses Ashley and I had originally just passed by on our travels, the journey hadn't taken near as long as it had previously but that probably had something to do with the swift and skilled driving of the mute hunter behind the wheel; no more than thirty minutes could have passed since initially leaving camp when the pick-up rolled to a stop in front of a set of vaguely familiar looking houses. Leaning forward as to get a better view through the windshield I silently gazed out onto the vacant street that lay still save for a few birds happily hopping around on the front lawn of one of the abandoned dwellings and the skinny cat watching them hungrily from its place hidden in a neighbouring bush; even after all this time seeing a place that had once been so full of life now looking rundown and empty was still very strange. Just as the scraggy feline was about to make its move on the oblivious feathered creatures milling about on the grass someone in the back slammed their hand down onto the roof of the cab creating a dull thud that surprised not only me but the birds as well causing them to beat a hasty retreat up into the sky much to the irritation of the tabby who after shooting us all an angry glare (swear to god) turned and slowly skulked off.

"It's all clear y'all." Shane stated softly before exiting the bed of the truck by smoothly jumping over the side with shotgun in hand and empty pack on his back, following the ex-officers lead the other two passengers collected their gear off the metal floor and stood up readying themselves to leave but instead of making a show out of it they kept it casual by unhooking the tailgate and climbing out that way. Casting a quick look to my left I watched as the sandy haired hunter glared icily out of the open driver side window at the leader of our expedition, the younger Dixon may not be quite as unpredictable and ill-mannered as his brother but if the guy didn't like you then he had no qualms about showing it and although Shane had never really done anything to Daryl that I was aware of for some reason the guy just didn't like him...maybe it's got something to do with the fact that Mr Walsh used to be a cop? In a flash the silent huntsman turned his head and cool blue eyes instantly met mine meaning once again I had been caught staring. He held my gaze for a long moment causing an almost painful blush to cover my cheeks; just as I was about to say something in my defence and try and redeem my reputation as a normal person and not a complete creeper Daryl looked away and without saying a single word snatched up the crossbow laying on the seat beside him, pushed open the door and jumped out. Sighing tiredly I stretched out my arm and reached across the bench to grab my duffle; with bag now in hand I opened the passenger door and hopped down onto the road, our small group had gathered together on the sidewalk so cautiously I walked around the front of the truck (glancing over my shoulder every few steps) and stopping once at Daryl's side. "Don't look like anyone's been here for a while." The former policeman's training had clearly kicked in because the guys dark orbs continued to survey the surrounding area regardless of him telling us it was clear not a few of minutes ago.

"That could be a good thing though right?" Glenn voiced quietly. "Might mean there's still some good stuff inside."

"Maybe." Hopefully, I silently prayed. Shane lowered his weapon after a while seemingly satisfied enough that the area was walker free, personally I wasn't feeling so content about our current situation and although this whole thing was my idea I was suddenly feeling that it may not have been one of my better ones because the eerie silence hanging over the street and the freaky shadows cast courtesy of the low sun and high trees were really giving me the heebie-jeebies. "For group safety it's probably best if one of us stays out here on watch, just in case and then the rest can split into pairs and go search the houses."

"Who's going to be lookout?" The worried looking Korean asked, he may have eventually agreed to come along and help look for supplies but having to stand around outside alone watching for any undead shamblers who might happen to be wandering around wasn't something the young kid had signed up for.

"I'll do it." Morales gallantly offered after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

"You sure?" Shane enquired seriously with eyes narrowed and dark brows furrowed in concern; I moved my gaze off of the former policeman just in time to see the dark haired man beside him wordlessly nod. "Then you'll need a weapon." It may have sounded simple but there was a slight problem...none of the others had anything spare because to make sure camp was protected while we were away some of the guns had been left behind which is why Officer Walsh only had his shotgun, Daryl his crossbow and Glenn well nothing; with this being the case it was left it to me to offer up one of my backups. Without saying anything I dropped down to the floor and slipped the khaki duffle off my shoulder, out of the corner of my eye I caught Daryl watching curiously as I unzipped the bag and then carefully reached inside to pull out the large gun hidden within; once the green carrier was sealed I pushed myself back up to full height.

"Here." Taking a small step I stretched out my arm and offered the weapon to the bearded man before me, he regarded it for a brief moment before finally closing the gap between us and taking it; I eyed Morales mutely as he leisurely shifted the deadly shooter between his hands obviously trying to get a feel for the unfamiliar firearm. "It's already loaded so be careful." At my warning he instantly stopped fiddling and instead settled on holding it with one hand firmly gripping the stock and the other cupping the fore-end which was located just under the barrel.

"Thank you."

"Don't I get a gun?" All eyes shot to Glenn who was stood on the other side of the curly haired cop with an empty hikers backpack in his left hand. Feeling the weight of everyone's stares fixed solely on him the ex-pizza boy sheepishly glanced down at the cracked sidewalk beneath his feet looking like he was suddenly regretting saying what he did out loud; Shane continued to watch the younger man for a beat longer with a disbelieving look on his face, the silence which had fallen over us was broken when the copper finally spoke.

"Unless you wanna trade places with Morales...then no." That slight spark of hopefulness which had been shining in the Koreans dark orbs quickly vanished at our leaders blunt words; ocean blue eyes rapidly moved between the two men as I tried to figure out if Shane was really going to let Glenn search around inside the unchecked houses unarmed, when the elder of the two made no move to find anything to give the other I found myself reaching into my duffle for the second time in less than five minutes...there was no way in hell I was going to let him wander off without having anything to defend himself. As I produced yet another weapon from my bag I spied the sandy haired hunter stood at my side staring at me once again but this time his lips were pursed tight and he was subtly shaking his head clearly not agreeing with my decision to hand off valuable items of protection to other members of the group.

"Take it, might not be a gun but it's better than nothing." Unlike Morales the young kid didn't hesitate in taking what I kindly offered and in a flash the baseball bat was securely clasped between his hands and the pack which had once been there was now strapped to his back.

"Thanks." He said with gratitude clear in his tone.

"No problem." I replied sending a small half smile in his direction that was politely returned.

"Okay then, now that we're all set it's time to get to work...I doubt any of us wanna be hangin' around here longer than necessary." Officer Walsh quickly did a scan of the area again just checking to make sure that our voices (which had been low) hadn't attracted any unwanted attention, when he was happy that we were clear for the time being he spun back around and pinned us all with a look that made it obvious that he was now in police officer/leader mode. "Morales, you hear or see anything just holler alright and we'll come runnin'." The darker skinned man nodded in understanding before making his way over to the pickup and climbing into the bed of it once more, after he was safely inside Morales shuffled over to the edge so that he was closer to the group and able to hear the rest of the conversation. "Well let's get movin'. Glenn you're with me, Charlotte stick with Daryl." Figures, if none of them had been comfortable riding with him then of course they wouldn't what to be paired off with him either (bunch of wimps) leave it to the lady to be partnered with the hot-headed hillbilly. "Remember food, water and toiletries are our main concern here but if you find anything else worth havin' then take it...not like it's doing anybody any good just sittin' there." He took a deep breath and then looked at each one of us pointedly -except for Mr Dixon- before continuing. "Make sure to be quiet and careful, just coz they look empty don't mean they truly are." Glancing around at the buildings surrounding us on nearly all sides I took a minute to wonder if he could be right...Daryl on the other hand seemed to be bored with the whole talking/planning/SAFETY thing because without saying anything he just took off across the unkempt grass towards the closest house which happened to be the one we had parked in front of; since he was my teammate for this mission I had no other choice but to follow him and if the amused smirk on Glenn's face was anything to go by I must have looked like some little lost puppy trailing after the impatient hick.

Deftly sidestepping a half chewed dog toy which lay partially hidden by the overgrown lawn I sped up my casual pace to a quick jog because one of Daryl's long strides was easily equivalent to maybe two of mine, it didn't take long to catch the hunter up and just as he was stepping onto the front porch I was by his side once more. "Thanks for waiting." He either didn't hear the whispered words or didn't care because my sarcastic comment went without a cutting reply which for a Dixon was extremely unusual; glancing up I watched wordlessly as he cupped large hands around his eyes and hunched over a little to peer though the window besides the door, the glass was caked with dirt and grime and god knows what else so if he could make anything out through it then the guy must have supervision. "See anything?" I asked softly while bending forward ever so slightly to try and get a peek; instead of answering me however Daryl just shot a look that blatantly meant '_shut it'_ over his shoulder before straightening back up and judging by the look on his face nothing inside could been seen so without a word he took a step back and pulled the crossbow off his shoulder readying himself for whatever was to come. First objective: enter the house. From the outside it seemed that the building had been securely locked up before the owners had fled probably hoping that it would help to keep the rest of their belongings safe while they were away at the refugee centre, it didn't look like they had come back meaning one of two things they were either alive and surviving out there somewhere or they were dead...in one capacity or another. With our opinions low trying the obvious was worth a shot so after taking a breath I moved closer to the wooden entryway and slowly reached out, slim fingers curled around the doorknob and after a careful twist of the brass handle I gave a gentle push...and was rewarded with nothing because just like I had thought it was locked; exhaling in frustration I moved back only to find Daryl staring at me with an incredulous look plastered across his face. "What? It was worth trying." Scoffing loudly the rude redneck shifted his trusty crossbow into his left hand and brushed past me, once in front of the door the younger Dixon kicked aside the doormat and upon finding nothing he swiftly set to work running his free hand along the top of the doorframe which protruded out further than the rest of the structure; I watched in complete amazement because within seconds the hunter was pulling his hand back with a gold key held firmly between work roughen fingers. "I'm not even going to ask how you knew to look there."

"Probably best." Daryl stated frankly before slipping the key into the lock and pushing open the door...no sooner had the seal of the building been broken when a stench far worst then anything I (or the Mr Dixon by the looks) had ever smelt before came flooding out, invading our nostrils like an army of unwashed warriors. "Jesus." He muttered lowly after taking a step back to clear his sinuses; honestly I couldn't blame him, during my career I'd been forced to deal with many a case that literally stunk ranging from mild halitosis all the way up to severe gangrene but none of them -not even that ruptured anal abscess I'd had to treat back in med school- even came close to rivalling the pungent odour that continued to leak out from inside the house.

"That can't be good."

"You reckon." Not liking the sarcastic tone of voice he was using to address me I shot an irritated look in his direction, the rude redneck didn't seem phased in the slightest because instead of making a snide remark about my exasperated expression he just lifted his crossbow and turned back towards the open door. "Come on, let's get this over with." With weapon in hand Daryl took a small step forward and using the toe of his boot he gave the door a sharp kick causing the wooden barrier to creak open the rest of the way, he may have tried valiantly to hide it but I spotted the slight grimace that graced his featured as the smell hit once again but this time with more force since we were now moving onto it. "Stay sharp." His brilliant blue eyes cast me a brief glance, and then without another word he entered the house as silently as a shadow; not wanting to be left behind I drew in another deep breath to calm my rattling nerves and warily trailed in after him.

Unlike the outside of the property with its peeling paint, broken shutters and swift growing shrubbery the interior looked completely untouched by time almost to the point that if it hadn't smelt like death you could probably have forgotten about the undead threat as soon as you walked in. As Daryl slowly and carefully scoped out the small entrance hall and adjoining living space I quietly closed the front door of the one storey home so that no unwanted visitors could wander in and give us a nasty surprise, after making sure it was secure I reached around my back to extract the black pistol hidden in the waistband of the blue jeans covering my legs; once sure that the area was clear the skilled huntsman continued further into the empty abode. As we moved down the short corridor I couldn't help noticing the closed doors we kept passing, apart from the kitchen located at the end of the hall which could easily be seen into due to the large archway used to access it all the others rooms in the house were sealed tight meaning that each one needed to be checked individually and with Daryl being such a professional walker eradicator it surprised me that he just walked by them without even a glance; just when I had built up enough courage to ask him about his blatant dismissal of a possible threat the sandy haired man came to a sudden stop in front of the white painted door situated closest to the kitchen.

Shooting a fleeting look over his shoulder the younger Dixon wordlessly motioned me forward with a tiny nod of his head. Not entirely understanding what is was he wanted me to do I reached out and gave the mute man a small pat on the arm, once he had returned his intense gaze to me I silently mouthed '_What?_' within a fraction of a second ocean coloured eyes had narrowed in irritation; after balancing his crossbow in one hand Daryl then moved his free one up towards his face stopping only briefly to give his nose two little pats before pointing to the door in front of us once again. At that minuet gesture it instantly clicked in my mind why he had forgone checking out the other rooms straight away...the hunter was following his nose right to the source of the unpleasant aroma; after giving a curt nod in understanding I deafly slipped around his broad frame so that I was now stood at his side and in front of the closed entryway, grasping the gun tightly in my right hand I quickly slipped the strap of the khaki duffle over my head freeing up my left so that I could grip the silver handle. Glancing up I locked eyes with Daryl momentarily before turning back and giving the door knob a firm push down and then the wooden barrier a nice hard shove, like earlier the smell instantly come flooding out (along with a ton of flies) and if it was possible the stench was even worst; to help try and block it out I pulled the sleeve of my checked shirt down over the hand which wasn't holding the gun before bringing it up to my face to cover my mouth and nose. Silently the sandy haired man moved into the room with his crossbow raised, cautiously I followed in behind him my azure eyes darting around all four corners of the moderate sized space until they abruptly came to rest on the shocking sight set upon the bed before us.

"Oh god." I murmured behind my hand; the remains of a woman who had probably been in her early forties at the time of her passing (but with the decomposition it was hard to tell) lay motionless across the brown patchwork comforter covering the king sized mattress. Ocean coloured orbs slowly scanned the length of the rotting body taking in every little detail from the stained floral nightgown and discoloured skin all the way up to the sunken eyes, gaunt cheeks and thinning straw like hair; even with having seen dead bodies before it never really gets any easier especially when they are in as such a bad state as this one.

"Explains the smell." Daryl said flatly as he guardedly eyed the decaying corpse. "What with bein' locked away inside and havin' only hot air circulatin'...she's started ta cook." At those blunt words an intense wave of nausea washed over me and to stop from throwing up on the carpet it took a lot of willpower and some deep breathing, thankfully it didn't take long for the sickness to pass and in only a few minutes I was feeling marginally better; out of the corner of my eye I spied Mr Dixon giving me a funny look before moving off to check the ensuite which was located across the room. Apart from the huge bed which pretty much took up all of the space there wasn't a whole lot of other furniture save for the end tables positioned on either side of the bed and a large dark wood dresser pushed up against the wall on the left side of the room. "Got another one." Glancing over I watched silently as Daryl stood in the now open doorway of the bathroom with his face slightly scrunched due to yet another hit of the foul smell, after batting away a few flies and shouldering his prized crossbow the younger Dixon brother moved further into the small space; things were completely quiet for a moment before Daryl's _dulcet_ tones sounded to fill the air. "Seems he took care of himself judgin' by the new wallpaper." Ever the sensitive soul. A peaceful hush fell over the place once more but alas it only lasted a moment thanks to my mission partner nosily clearing out anything of use from every shelf, draw and cabinet in the room; since he had already set to work I decided to do the same so with gun firmly gripped in my right hand I cautiously took a step closer to the bed with every intention of searching through the side table. "How long you reckon they been dead?" Daryl asked unexpectedly, his voice slightly muffled due to him still being in the other room; it really did surprise me that he even cared what with the all action no talk bravado it seemed imperative for him to play up in camp whether to impress his asshole of a big brother or keep other people away who knows.

"Can't say." I replied honestly once making it to the head of the bed. "Due to the _cooking_ and all it's hard to tell for sure." Well trained eyes scanned the body again noting several clear signs of active decay one of which happened to be the large amount of maggots squirming around inside an open wound located on the late woman's right forearm, turning away from the gruesome sight I glanced up and out of the sealed window set above the nightstand. "At least a couple of weeks though, maybe more." A low grunt of acknowledgment came from the bathroom and with Daryl being Daryl I knew it was all I was going to get. Sighing softly I glanced back down at the lifeless body and froze...what had moments ago just been two closed hollows surrounded by sunken grey marbled skin were now wide awake clouded blue orbs which in that moment were locked on nothing but me, as I stood there motionless with my heart beating a mile a minute the walker which thankfully still lay on the bed inhaled a stuttering breath causing its whole body to twitch with newly restored life. "Holy shit." My whispered words acted as some sort of activation code because no sooner had they left my lips did the creature lurch forward like some old vampire rising from its coffin, fortunately the walkers movement was the action needed to snap me from my daze because just as its long spindly fingers were about to seize a handful of my shirt I managed to quickly stumble backwards and out of its grasp but since I wasn't paying attention to anything other than the newly revived corpse I didn't realise until it was too late that I had backed up rather quickly (and painfully) into the dresser which in turn knocked over and sent flying almost everything that had once been placed on top of it; the increased distance between us only seemed to encourage the walker and it began clawing franticly in my direction as strangled groans and moans began tumbling from its almost none existent lips.

Words caught in my throat as I remained petrified with fear no more than a few feet away from the thing that wanted nothing more than to sink its teeth into my supple flesh, the increased vigour at which the walker woman moved made her body shift forward causing one leg to drop off the side of the bed; that slight change in position seemed to somehow remind the reanimated corpse that it had newly working limbs below the waist and in the blink of an eye it was standing. It felt as if time completely stopped as we stayed locked in a silent standoff with the only sounds being that of the walkers raspy breathing and the rapid pulsing of blood as it thumped loudly in my ears; every possible means of escape began flashing inside my mind from dashing out the still open door, calling for Daryl, even going so far as crashing through the closed window above the end table...but my body wasn't listening. Seemly having had enough of waiting and with quenching its insatiable hunger being the sole objective the freshly risen walker released a sound that was a mixture of an animalistic growl and a strangled groan before launching itself forward, stick thin arms outstretched and hands clawing at the air. Almost of their own accord my wide eyes snapped shut as I prepared myself for the excruciating pain that was only seconds away from invading my body, the inhuman noises coming from the creature grew louder and just as the faintest brush of its skeletal appendages could be felt against the front of my shirt a low whistle sliced through the air followed shortly by a dull thud and then complete quiet.

"Did it get ya?" Ocean blue orbs slowly drifted open as Daryl's voice broke the tense silence which had descended, the spot where the walker had been just moments before now stood empty and if it hadn't been for the lingering smell and rumpled front of my top it would have been as if the whole thing had been a bad dream...however when I glanced down I was instantly reminded of the reality. Crumpled in an awkward heap on the ground by my feet -with an arrow speared through its skull- was the walker woman, twisted in such a way that it was almost painful to look at; wordlessly I watched as empty eyes stared up at me while a puddle of dark crimson liquid began to pool around the lifeless corpse. "Hey!" Tearing my gaze away from the mess which was quickly spreading across the floor I turned towards the source of the sound that had snapped me from my daze only to find myself faced with and extremely angry looking Daryl Dixon, he stood in the open doorway of the bathroom with crossbow in hand and a unreadable expression set on his face. "Are you bit?" The sandy haired hunter asked in an even tone while his cool blue eyes remained locked on my still frozen figure. If it had been anyone else I would have sworn an underlying hint of concern could have been detected but since it was Daryl, a man who seemed only to care about himself and his brother I dismissed it without a second thought; taking my continued silence as a bad sign the younger Dixon wordlessly raised his crossbow and quickly readied another bolt...preparing himself for the possibility of having to put down one of his camp mates.

"No..no...wait." Sensing the downward shift in the atmosphere I slowly raised my arms to show there was no danger and that I was completely unharmed, well physically anyway. "I'm fine." He regarded me cautiously for a few moments more before finally relaxing his rigid stance and lowering his weapon, a wave of relief washed over me as Daryl then shouldered the crossbow meaning he was feeling safe enough to go without having it immediately to hand; in several large strides the huntsman was across the room and at the end of the bed no more than an arms width away from me. Still on alert Mr Dixon silently gave me the once over to make sure that I wasn't trying to hide any cuts or bites, once satisfied that I was of no harm he turned his attention to the walker he'd just dispatched; thankfully with him being such an ace shot we didn't have to worry about it rising for a second time but the ring of blood surrounding the body continued to grow at an unbelievable rate and if we weren't careful the pair of us would soon be standing in it.

"Why the fuck didn't ya shot it?" Daryl asked sharply, ice blue eyes once again focused in on my face. "You just toting that thing round for fun or what?" It was only then thanks to the mention of it that I remembered the object which was clasped in my right hand; during all the chaos I completely forgot that I held a means of escape and survival in my grasp the entire time, all that I had needed to do was lift my arm and pull the trigger...but I didn't...I couldn't.

"I-I froze... ...it's the first time I've seen one up close since-" Suddenly a barrage of images...of memories began playing inside my head like an unwanted movie, the sights and the sounds looking as clear as the day they had happened bringing to the forefront of my mind things I'd been trying so hard to bury; closing tired eyes I took a deep breath and shook my head to clear away the vision and send it back to where it belonged. "Never mind." Glancing up my azure orbs met Daryl's intense gaze and for a lingering moment we just silently stared at each other, he never had been an easy one to read but if there was one emotion that a Dixon was unafraid to show it was anger and in that instant unbridled rage was burning bright in his eyes; feeling increasingly uncomfortable under his scrutiny I turned away. "It won't happen again."

"Damn right." He scoffed. "I ain't endin' up some mouldy fucks lunch just coz you ain't got the guts to waste it." Without hesitation and with zero qualms the clearly irritated man took a step forward -placing his foot right in the center of the blood soaked area of carpet- and bent down to retrieve his arrow, using his boot to steady the head Daryl grasped the end of the bolt and gave a firm pull extracting the thing in a single try; after wiping the walker residue off onto his jeans he returned the arrow to its rightful place before stepping away from the motionless body. "Time ta get movin' doc, still got the rest of this place to search." And like that...he was gone. Sighing softly I brushed some raven hair out of my face and pushed away from the chest of drawers I'd crashed into during the attack, deep down in my gut it felt wrong just leaving the poor woman's body laid out there on the ground but what else could I do? After casting one last glance I spun around and followed the younger Dixon's trail of bloody footprints out of the room, I must have stayed in there longer than I thought because when I finally caught up with Daryl again he was stood in front of the only closed door left in the hall. "Kitchen and bathroom are clean, I'm gonna go check down here."

"Shouldn't we stay together?"

"I'm better on my own." He stated almost instantly; I wasn't going to disagree with the man because he'd cleared accomplished more in the past few minutes solo than the both of us had combined since arriving but even with that as a fact separating really wasn't a good idea in my opinion, before I could begin to list the multitude of reasons why sticking together was for the best he'd wrenched the wooden door open and started down the stairs. "Start grabbin' whatever shit we need, then we can get the hell outta here." Daryl didn't even spare a fleeting glance over his shoulder as he disappeared into the basement; I watched from the landing as the hunter hit the concrete floor with crossbow raised, after a quick sweep of the area he moved forward and completely melted into the shadows. Fearing the wrath of the silent assassin it was probably best to do as he'd said and save pissing him off anymore than I clearly already had thanks to my near brush with death, since the kitchen was likely to have most to offer I decided to leave it till last and instead moved off to empty anything of use out of the moderate sized family bathroom; due to Daryl having already checked I felt it safe enough to go in unarmed and slipped the pistol back into the waistband of my cropped jeans. It didn't take too long to raid the washroom and surprisingly I actually managed to find quite a few things of worth including unopened soap, bottles of body wash/shampoo/conditioner, razors and thankfully a few ladies essentials there was also some of the requested items such as an almost full tube of toothpaste and several rolls of toilet paper; I don't know whether it was down to one of the homeowners being a hypochondriac or simply just a sale at the pharmacy but when I opened the cabinet above the sink I found a rather substantial amount of medicine ranging from aspirins to zantac and then everything else in-between. Sometimes it really does help to be prepared...shame the people that collected everything together weren't able to get any use from it; once finished I shouldered the quarter full duffle and continued on my way with the next stop being the living area located across the hall.

The open planned lounge was decorated in neutral colours that were only made brighter by the strong rays of sunlight streaming in though the large front window, considering the space was reasonability large there were only a few key pieces of furniture scattered around the room making the place look slightly bare but still comfortably lived in. I silently stepped forward my baby blues scanning around and lingering on items that in the past they never would have cast a second look, one of the objects which caught my gaze was the newspaper that lay open on the couch looking like it was just waiting for whoever had dropped it there to come back and finish perusing the sports page; it's strange to think that in all likelihood no one will ever get to read a freshly printed newspaper again or a newly published novel...hell I might even start missing those stupid celebrity gossip rags that used to line almost every rack in the store. Leaning over I plucked the small stack of letters that lay gathering dust up off the coffee table and began casually flicking through them, it didn't take look before I had a name for the walker women: Mrs Janet Marshall. Going by her bank statement it seemed she worked as a teller at the local branch and liked to regularly give money to the hospital and also a senior care home in Virginia, skimming a couple more I found that the name of her husband (the body in the bathroom I'm assuming) was James; unlike his wife's charitable donations Mr Marshall liked to spend his hard earned cash down at a bar called Griffinsjudging by the sizable tab he had going.

Dropping the letters back on the old dark wood table I continued searching, since the room was on the smaller side and also incredibly tidy there wasn't really anything of value laying around but after a good hunt in the drawers of the side table set next to the couch I found a pack of batteries and a sewing kit...not exactly finds of the century but still useful; once they were safely inside the duffle I moved across the beige carpet but stopped in front on the rooms focal point. Set in pride of place along the top of the large fireplace stood three photographs each boarded by an ebony frame: the first was a black and white shot of the Marshall's on their wedding day dressed to the nines and wrapped in each other's arms, next was one of a beautiful blue eyed baby girl smiling up at the camera with a toothless grin while wrapped in a bright pink fleece blanket; lastly a snapshot of the same couple (but older) grinning and laughing like fools with a brunette teen hugged tightly between them. While looking over the pictures one thing became binding clear...the Marshall's had a daughter. With both parents being deceased it's impossible to know what became of the girl, she could have been at school when things had reached breaking point and was unable to get home or maybe she succumbed to the sickness before her mother and father passed; there's even the possibility she could still be alive out there right now fighting to get back to her family. Not wanting to dwell on the things that could be I gave myself a shake and focused back in on the things that were, as I turned away from the photographs my sapphire orbs locked onto something located on the wall opposite the bay window. Before the world went to hell what I now looked at would rarely if ever be cause for alarm but nowadays anything could be lurking behind a closed door, Daryl must have missed it on his initial search because I highly doubt a hunter as well trained as him would just forget about something that could potentially be very dangerous. In a few short strides I was before the door which looked identical to the others save for the personalized name plate the hung from the it, reaching up I ghosted my fingertips over the name which had been skilfully etched into the painted wood...Hannah; a beautiful name meaning 'gracious' or 'He (God) has favoured me' it had been on my sisters shortlist before she finally decided on Ashley.

For a brief moment I contemplated calling Daryl but after remembering the mood he'd been in when we'd parted I decided against it, dragging the hunter away from his task to come and help with something I could easily do myself would only serve to aggravate the man's already fragile temper. Looping an arm around back I carefully retrieved the gun from its improvised holster and then slowly brought it to the front, there were no sounds coming from behind the wooden barrier but that didn't mean there was nothing there; after taking a deep breath and with weapon in hand I stepped forward and grabbed the handle like the others (bar the front) it wasn't locked and with a slight push the white painted door opened easily. A fresh wave of that vile aroma hit me almost immediately meaning one of two thing, I'd either popped an extremely potent smell-bubble which had gathered or there was a body in here; raising the gun I took a tiny step through the doorway to get a better look inside. Apart from the somewhat usually turquoise colour that covered the walls it looked your typical teenage girls bedroom, it had all the usual furniture (bed, side table, desk, dresser ect.) and there were personal pictures and celebrity posters tacked up everywhere...the one thing it didn't seem to have thankfully was a corpse; the single bed was unmade but empty and with a quick glance around what I could see of the place was clear. Just as I was about to go in a give it a proper check a strange scrabbling noise coming from one of the other rooms caught my attention, dismissing the vacant bedroom in exchange for finding the source of the mystery sound I quickly backtracked through the living area and darted out into the hallway; the scratching continued to echo around the single storey home and the closer I got to the kitchen the louder it became. It didn't take long to reach the entrance of the room and as soon as I had walked under the curved archway the origin of the disturbance was instantly apparent.

"Hey there buddy. Where'd you come from?" Stood on the other side of the French doors (which led out into the garden) was a dog, it was medium sized with beautiful big brown eyes and judging by the coat and body shape I'd say it was probably a crossbred of some sort...maybe a German Sheppard/Labrador mix with the general build and look of the latter but the colouring of the former. The curious canine regarded me warily from its place on the other side of the glass divide, after a moment or two of complete silence and a thorough visual inspection I must have been deemed a non-threat by the animal because once again it began clawing at the back door. "You want in?" I asked in a soft, even tone as to not spook the black and tan beast; in way of reply it raised a front paw and gave a single swipe to the wooden frame before taking a small step back, deep chocolate orbs locked on me the entire time. Quickly crossing the lino covered floor I came to a stop in front of the doors, reaching forwards with my free hand I grasped the curved gold handle and pushed down...unsurprisingly it was locked; with a soft sigh I glanced down and found my new friend still staring at me waiting patiently to be let inside. "Got any idea where the key is?" Dropping down into a sitting position and cocking its head to the side it gave me a look as if to say '_seriously_'; a faint laugh slipped past my lips as I turned away and slipped the duffle strap over my head. "Figures." In two small steps I was standing next to the large dining table which was located against the right wall, carefully so that I didn't damage any of the supplies already inside I lifted the bag and placed it onto the table top; since there was no immediate danger I didn't see the need to be carrying so I set the pistol down also before starting about my search for the key. Thankfully the kitchen wasn't that big so that cut down the possible hiding places considerably; I moved to the other side of the room and began rummaging through some of the drawers and cabinets, during the hunt I spied a few useful things that would definitely be grabbed later on but unfortunately a key wasn't one of them. Pushing the wooden tray closed I dropped my head back and exhaled loudly...why couldn't they have just left the damn thing on a key hook like normal people? As I brought my head back up into alignment my baby blues happened to skim over a lone photograph that was stuck to the front of one of the cabinets, it was a snap of Hannah (the young blue eyed brunette from the other photos) she was stood in the middle of a large grassy park hugging a miniature version of the dog from outside close to her chest. Slowly everything started to slot together and as I glanced over my shoulder a wave of sympathy for the loyal animal hit me like a train, at some point before taking his own life Mr Marshall must have released the dog out into the wild to give it a fighting chance at survival; it's strange that the man could so easily take his own life but was unable to do the same when it came to the family pet...I guess real love really can withstand anything because even after losing its owners and being thrown out of home that dog has remained close by to protect and guard the only place it has ever known as well as the people inside. Suddenly a low growling sounded from behind the glass snapping me from my thoughts instantly, turning round fully I cautiously eyed the now clearly agitated animal. "What's wrong?" I wasn't expecting a reply or anything but when the growls increased in volume and the canine took up a defensive stance with legs wide and gleaming white teeth bared it became clear that something was amiss. "Hey, hey, calm down...I'm not going to hurt you."

"Gurrrarggg." My back straightened in a flash and even if I hadn't been looking at the dog at the time you wouldn't have needed to be a genius to figure out that that noise had obviously not come from said animal, my gaze flicked down briefly and that was when I realized that the hound had never been growling at me but at something directly behind; slowly -and with fear bubbling violently in my gut- I turned to face the direction in which the chilling sound had originated. A pained gasp caught in my throat as wide azure eyes came to rest on the gangly figure lurking in the archway, dressed in a simple combo of a white cami and blue polka dot sleep shorts with long lifeless brown tresses hanging limply around their face stood none other than Hannah Marshall; the remains of a bloody bandage hung down from the girls upper arm and her once beautiful blue eyes were now clouded in that nasty way all walkers were. Knowing that even the slightest movement or faintest sound would cause the girl to strike without delay I tried to remain as still as possible if only to give myself that extra second to think of a plan, it was too late to call Daryl and even if it wasn't I couldn't and wouldn't risk shouting for help just encase he ran up the stairs and walked straight into her; my only other option for surviving an almost certain death was located on top of the table across the room...ideally using a handgun in such close confines wouldn't be my first choice but unfortunately given the situation I don't have many other options. Time continued to tick by and however much I silently prayed help was clearly not coming so with growls of varying pitch resonating around the room and heart beating a mile a minute I took my chance and dived forward towards the table, like I'd thought the movement instantly triggered the walkers basic instincts and immediately she started after me...but much quicker than any other I'd previously seen. Slim fingers had just brushed against the pistol when a deathly cold hand latched onto my wrist, on reflex I wrenched my arm back violently but due to the force of the action combined with an awkward stance and wobbly legs my body was sent tumbling to the ground where I landed hard right on my ass.

"Ahhh." I hissed as a sharp pain shot up my spine. The rough -but undeniably effective- means of escape did little to deter the young walker and as soon as her milky blue orbs had located me once more she was back on the attack; quickly I began to shuffle away from the undead creature as it suddenly dropped down onto the floor just beyond my feet, thanks to the blind panic coursing through my veins I stupidly managed to back myself into the dark coloured counters lining the left wall. "Shit." A pair of skeletal hands curled around my left foot and I then watched in horror as the walkers head started to descend with mouth wide open and discoloured teeth exposed. "No." Using my other foot I landed a swift kick to the girls temple stunning her momentarily but not enough to have the hold on my ankle released. "Let." KICK! "Go." KICK! Being completely boxed in and with nowhere to go I really began to freak, my furry friend outside must have been able to sense my fear as well as see the danger I was currently in because as I continue to fight off the walking corpse the low snarls from earlier turned into loud barks and then the scratching restarted but with renewed vigour; the dogs effort was valiant but there no way it was getting in but surprisingly the sound of its barking actually had an effect and drew the walkers interest away from me momentarily. Not knowing how long the reprieve would last I frantically began searching for anything that could be used as a weapon, by some miracle the counter I was pushed up against happened to be located right next to the stove and there sat on the hob illuminated by the afternoon sun was my lifeline, with my arm bent at an extremely strange angle I reached up and took hold of the well worn handle of the frying pan; my sudden movement recaptured the teen walkers attention and just as it was turning back to face me I sucked in a harsh breath and brought the metal pan down onto her head with everything I had.

"Urrggahh." Dark red blood slowly leaked out of the wound I had just inflicted, dripping down the girls face and right into her eyes and mouth; once was clearly not going to be enough so I raised the fry pan again and just like before smashed it down onto my attackers skull but this time instead of stopping after just a single blow I repeated the action again...and again...and again until all that was left of the girls once beautiful face was a mess of tissue and blood topped with a tangled heap of ratty brown locks. As soon the realization of what I had just done began to sink in my vice like grip on the handle released and the now blood covered cooking utensil hit the lino with a dull metallic thud, needing to be as far away from the body as possible I clumsily crawled across the floor until my aching body was pressed against the cool glass of the french doors; with adrenaline pumping and shock building I sat back with my eyes closed and tried to get my breathing back to an even rhythm; just as I was calming down and my canine companion was beginning to settle a chorus of loud repetitive thumps sounded putting us both back on alert...we needn't of bothered however because in the seconds following Daryl Dixon appeared around the corner with face set and crossbow at the ready.

"What's goin' on?" His intense ice blue eyes surveyed the scene; quickly flicking from my huddled form, to the bloodied weapon, to the prone corpse and then back again a few more times before finally coming to rest on me. "The hell she come from?" Judging by his tone it was obvious that he was still pissed off from before and undoubtedly this newest incident had done little to improve the man's mood, due to my current state talking about what had just transpired was the last thing I wanted to do but with the huntsman looking about ready to snap I had little choice.

"Her room." My voice was raspier than usual -probably because of my mini panic attack- but after a small cough to clear the pipes it was back to being almost normal. "We missed it earlier." A deep frown become visible on his face at my words, either from disbelief of them entirely or annoyance at himself for having done what was said; bracing my hands against the floor I pushed up onto my feet and using the door for balance dragged myself into a standing position. "I was just about to have a look around...but then I got distracted."

"Distracted?" For a brief moment my ocean coloured orbs shot down, Daryl caught the slight movement however and followed my line of sight to where the black and tan animal still stood but now looking a lot more chilled then when the walker had been wandering the kitchen; the stern look set over his features intensified and silently I watched as the younger Dixon's tightly clenched jaw began to twitch...a sure sign of the man's growing rage. "Un-_fuckin'_-believable." He spat acidly. "Can't leave ya alone for five minutes without havin' a geek try ta take a bite outta ya...and all coz of some dumb dog." Turned my head to the right I shot a glare in his direction, not because of the fact he had basically called be an useless damsel but because of what he'd said about my four legged friend who continued to patiently wait on the other side of the glass watching the pair of us like a hawk.

"For your information." I snapped back at him. "That _dumb_ dog just saved my life." Daryl said nothing, only stared at me as if I'd just told him the sky was green and that clouds were made of cotton candy; it was only when discomfort was practically dripping from my every pore that the huntsman finally broke his gaze and walked fully into the kitchen. After shouldering his crossbow the sandy haired man carefully dodged the corpse and it's ever growing halo of blood, eyeing the motionless body warily before pausing in his stride to pick up my improvised weapon from earlier; suspended high in the air with the handle tightly grasped between his thumb and forefinger Daryl slowing spun the bloodstained fryer silently inspecting it before returning his eyes to me.

"I think you'll find that was the skillet." Oh well deduced Mr Holmes. Once finished looking it over he stepped around the fallen body and placed the frying pan back on the stove; having had quite enough of his Mr Know-it-all's attitude I turned my back to him and once more began looking for the key which unlocked the back door, I could almost feel his eyes tracing my every move but instead of acknowledging the unnerving effect it was having on me I just continued on with my task which seemed to irk the younger Dixon to no end. Glancing around the room for what felt like the millionth time I still could not find what I was looking for and the frustrations inside of me was steadily building; just as I was on the verge of having a breakdown something in my peripheral began to shimmer in the sun instantly drawing my gaze, once the source was located a small victorious smile set itself upon my lips.

"Gotcha." There right in plain sight hanging off a small hook attached to a rectangular corkboard was a small silver key decorated with a tiny tree etched into the surface of it, quickly crossing the short distance I plucked the metal item off its hanger and then spun round and made my way back to the door.

"What the hell you doin' now?" Daryl asked rather abruptly as he watched me slip the key into the lock.

"What does it look like?" Peeking over my shoulder I found the hunter staring straight at me with arms crossed and eyes narrowed, clearing not loving what I was about to do; sighing softly I dropped my hand and turned to face him. "You don't expect me to leave the poor thing out there do you?" He regarded the animal which stared right back at him for a moment, baby blues running over the dog several times before finally shrugging his shoulders in a somewhat dismissive gesture.

"Why not? Seems to be doin' just fine." Shaking my head in utter astonishment I moved back to face the glass entry and with a flick and a click unlocked it, the canine's large button ears perked up at the sound of the catch and before I even had the door a quarter of the way ajar the big ball of fur was already barging its way in by wedging its head in the small gap and levering the wooden barrier open further to created a gap big enough to accommodate its substantial frame. A tinkle of laughter slipped from my lips as I watched the animal hurriedly push its way inside, as soon as the faint sound hit the air the dog was reminded of mine and Daryl's presence within the room and in a flash a pair of particularly alert brown eyes were trained on me; given everything that had happened to the poor creature it have every reason in the world to be wary of a couple of strangers wandering around its house so very slowly I lowered myself to the group until I was kneeling on the lino now almost eye to eye with the pooch.

"Hey...it's okay, I'm not going to hurt you." My voice was soft and even just like before, trying to keep everything nice and calm. "Remember?" Cautiously I stretched my right arm out, palm up and fingers together; when my hand was a few inches from the dogs face I stopped not wanting to push things too far too fast...it was now down to my new friend to make the next move. It felt like forever -and the entire time I could feel Daryl burning holes into the back of my head- but finally a cold wet nose bumped my palm shortly followed by a rough tongue, I wasn't really that ticklish but the strange sensation created by the unexpected action caused my hand to twitch involuntarily; chocolate orbs shot to my face looking for some sort of conformation that what it had just done was alright my smile must have been all that was needed because once it had seen the tiny grin set there all hell broke loose. I was on my ass in a second, a slight yelp escaping as my already bruised rump hit the floor; the fact that I was in pain didn't seem to bother my attacker however and the beast continued its assault on my face. "Oh, well thank you. That's quite a welcome." With slobber no doubt dripping from my cheeks due to the hounds overenthusiastic greeting I lightly fisted my hands in the pups fur and once gaining a fair grip I used the leverage to push the animal back and away from me a step, with a small gap now separating us I could breathe a little easier once more but as I looked up I found a pair of the darkest brown eyes gazing straight at me; being this close up the gold flecks scattered through the dark irises could be easily seen. "Aren't you a handsome boy...or girl." To me it definitely looked more like a male but with dogs you can never be too sure judging by just appearance alone, without being too obvious I tried to lean over slightly and get a glimpse of the animals underside but as usual Mr Dixon was one step ahead of me.

"Heads up." Turning in just the nick I managed to catch the item Daryl had thrown at me and avoid getting smacked in the face, glancing down I let my ocean blue orbs run the length of the object before reaching forward to flip the metal tag hanging from the leather strip...engraved on the front of the ID along with the buildings address and phone number were four simple letters.

"Bear." At the sound of his name the brown eyed boy let out a excited bark and began wagging his tail so fast it was a miracle he didn't take off. "That because you growl like one huh?" To this he voiced another loud yip, I gave the top of his head a good scratch laughing softly at the oversized puppy's antics all the while; when Bear had finally settled enough to actually sit down from longer than five seconds I lifted the collar from my lap and slipped it around his thick neck. "Can't have you walking around naked now can we." It didn't take long to securely buckle the strap and after making sure it wasn't too tight I shuffled back to get a good look at the now fully dressed dog. "There...all done." Almost as soon as I'd moved back he began shaking his head clearly trying to get used to the feeling of being collared once again after having gone weeks without.

"You done flirtin' with that mutt now?" Daryl asked rudely with sarcasm and irritation practically dripping from every word. "Coz we got a damn job ta do." I didn't get a chance to reply because before my mouth was even open he had already dropped his full rucksack to the floor and snatching up my duffle from the table, silently I watched as the sandy haired hunter began yanking open drawers and throwing open cupboards grabbing anything that was inside and still edible; Bear's eyes followed the man's moves also but unlike myself the canine wasn't accustomed to Mr Dixon's bi-polar behaviour and as a result his body stiffened and a low rumpling started to sound.

"Don't mind Mr Cranky over there." I said gently, running my hands soothingly over the smooth fur covering the animals back. "He's just jealous." The commotion behind me stilled for a moment and out of curiosity I peeked over my shoulder to see what had happened, what greeted me was a pair of steel blue eyes and if looks could kill I'd be six feet under right about now; it was pretty obvious he'd heard me and doing my best to fight the grin which desperately wanted to emerge I set the most innocent expression I could muster on my face and just continued to stare back at him. "What?" Daryl didn't answer and after one last burning glare he turned away to continue with his work, by the looks of things he had taken it upon himself to clear the whole kitchen so instead of sitting here doing nothing I designated myself the task of finding some stuff for Bear; since my bag had been commandeered finding a new one was first on the agenda. Once back on two feet I visually swept the room again and unlike the key which had taken me ages to find locating a bag was easy to do because there was one hanging in plain sight, stepping up to the counter I bent down a plucked the beige canvas tote off of the drawer handle and began collecting the items needed due to now having a dog in camp. God must have decided that I'd already had my far share of hardships today because as I pulled open the cabinet the shopper had previously been dangling from I found what looked to be the family pet supply store; hidden inside was a half empty bag of kibble as well as a full pack of dog jerky both of which were quickly stiffed into the tote, right at the back there was a small yellow bag of cat treats making me wonder briefly if maybe that skinny tabby from before belong to the Marshalls too...whatever the reason I took them as well because dogs like chicken too right? Once cleared of anything of worth I got up and moved across the room to where Bear's bed could be found, inside lay a couple of toys and a cosy looking fleece blanket seeing no point in leaving them there I picked all three up and slipped them inside the bag along with the blue double dish dog bowl that sat beside the wicker basket; with job completed and shopper full I stood up.

"Done?" I jumped at the sudden sound of Daryl's voice because he'd been so quiet for a time that I had almost forgotten he was there, looking back I found him standing by the archway with crossbow placed on his back and a bag in each hand; after a moment of silence I hoisted the tote up onto my shoulder and gave a curt nod. "Then let's go." He cast me one last passing look before striding out of the room, as I watched him walk away a wet nose lightly nudged the hand resting at my side in a polite means of gaining some attention; using the appendage that Bear was now contentedly licking I reached over a gave the goofball a good scratch behind the ear before straightening up once more in preparation to leave.

"Well you heard the man." Remembering the pistol which still lay on the table top I quickly jogged over and grabbed it, once back in its rightful place I turned but before having even taken a step my sapphire orbs where drawn to the picture I'd been looking at earlier; since Daryl was already halfway to the front door hanging back for a little while longer wasn't going to do any harm. Crossing the room again I lifted my arm and plucked the photo from the cupboard door and tucked it into the back pocket of my jeans...he may only be a dog but I think everyone (even those of the four legged variety) deserve to have a reminder of what their lives were like before all this shit happened. With the kitchen now fully emptied I started towards the exit with my canine companion following right behind; on the way out we had to go round the fallen body of Hannah Marshall and as we were I noticed Bear pause momentarily and release a low whine, watching him grieve for her was like getting a stab to the heart because I know whats it's like to lose your family and I wouldn't wish that on anybody even an animal. It was in that moment that I knew I couldn't just walk away...at least not yet. "Wait!" I called out just as the younger Dixon was reaching for the door handle, at the sound of my voice he groaned loudly in exasperation before turning his head.

"What now?" You could clearly tell by his face and his tone that the man really was not in the mood to work with me anymore but seeing as I've had to put up with both his and Merle bullshit for the past couple of weeks he can just bloody well deal with it; taking a deep breath and brushing back a wayward lock of raven hair I turned my eyes up to meet his and then began my plea.

"We can't just leave her like that...or the others."

"Why the fuck not?" He shot back harshly before turning round fully.

"Because it's wrong." As I continued speaking the anger building within Daryl was almost visible, his entire body tense and those icy blue eyes which remained fixed on me looking the coldest I'd ever seen them; the glare being sending my way might usually have had me thinking twice but not today...I was determined and nothing, not even a grumpy crossbow wielding redneck was going to stop me. "They didn't ask for this."

"Nobody _asked_ for this." The huntsman stated, his voice raising in volume. "You gonna have us goin' round buryin' every god damn body we find because a that?"

"Of course not, but we _can_ do something for these people." Pulling my gaze from the younger Dixon I let azure orbs skim a photograph of the Marshalls' that hung on the wall just to the right of where I stood, they looked so happy there laughing and smiling without a care in the world...but look at them now. For a brief moment I let my guard down and an image of my own family flashed before my eyes, never again would we be united as one because even in death we'd still be separated and that stung more then I'd ever thought possible; sighing softly I turned back to look at the man who still stood in front of me staring daggers. "They're a family Daryl...they deserve to be together." At my words his stern expression lessened somewhat and the fire burning behind his eyes began to die, the guy might act like an asshole most of the time but it seems that even a Dixon could get an attack of conscience every once and a while. We stood there in silence for several moments more and during that time he made no move that would indicate having decided to help, as time passed my hope in him started to fade and I was left knowing that it would be down to me alone if I wanted to get this done. Shaking my head sadly I slipped the canvas tote off my shoulder and set it on the floor, Bear was still stood next to Hannah's body so before I could set about moving her I needed to get him away; reaching down I took a hold of for his leather collar I gave a firm but gentle pull this gained the animal attention and with a little persuasion and a kind smile he began to back up. "Good boy." Now fully in control I managed to manoeuvre him out of the kitchen and over to where the bag sat in the hallway once there I told the canine to sit which to my surprise he instantly obeyed, with him now safely out of the way I could carry on with my plan and move on to the not so pleasant task of moving the teenagers body into the bedroom.

A thick puddle of dark coloured blood had quickly formed around the head and torso of the corpse so I decided it would probably be easiest to use her feet and drag her out, the down side of this however was the messy trail it would undoubtedly leave on the floor; obviously if I had help then between the two of us we could just carry the body but as I'm doing this thing solo my choices are extremely limited. After exhaling a shaky breath I gently took hold of the girls ankles, her skin clammy and ice cold to the touch which at first I thought was strange because it usually took more than a few minutes for a body to lose its heat and that was when it occurred to me that in reality it had had more time because technically she had been dead for weeks; pushing those thoughts to the back of my mind I straightened up and started moving towards the bedroom all the while hauling the downed walker with me. Considering the petite size of the girl she weighed more than you'd think, getting out of the kitchen was reasonably easily as her body glided across the lino with almost no resistance but when we got to the carpeted hallway I was presented with a challenge because in my weakened state due to going days with hardly any food I was finding it almost impossible to lug the teens corpse across the corridor especially with the addition of the friction created by the beige floor covering; it took over five minutes to get halfway and by then I was about ready to keel over and join the Marshalls. A loud thud sounded from the other side of the room making me jump but before I could turn and investigate Daryl appeared at my side, without a word he took up position opposite me and bent down to scoop up the walkers bloodied upper body not caring in the slightest that his shirt was now stained crimson. A small smile tugged at the corners of my lips, deep down he really was a good guy with a good heart and this only served to prove that; it was like he could sense what I was thinking because just as I was about to thank him the younger Dixon raised his head and pinned me with a pointed look.

"Don't go gettin' no ideas, only reason I'm helpin' is coz I'd be stuck here watchin' you for god knows how long otherwise." Instead of replying and getting into an argument I simply nodded, he remained quiet but judging by the look on his face he was a little surprised that I let the remark go without reproach. Working as a team it took next to no time to move the body where we wanted it; once Hannah's remains had been placed carefully on the top of the mattress Daryl took it upon himself to go and collect the cadaver of Mr Marshall from the bathroom leaving me to move the last of the trio from the floor to the bed, thankfully the distance which needed to be covered was much less than before and with a bit of effort I managed to heave Janet's skeletal frame up onto the bed so that she was now next to her daughter not long after I had set her down the sandy haired hunter emerged from the washroom and in a couple of strides was besides the bed dumping down the body he carried unceremoniously; I almost snapped at him but knew it wouldn't be worth the effort. It may just have been out of habit but leaving the trio lying there uncovered didn't sit right with me so after a quick scan I found an old patchwork comforter sat on top of an antique looking chest located at the end of the bed, leaning over I snatched it up and shook it out creating a mini dust cloud; once fully open I moved back up the bed and draped the quilt over the forever still family making sure that each was completely concealed under the fabric. "You finished?" Daryl asked after I'd taken a step back, all that was needed from me was a slight nod and he was out the door. "Fuckin' finally." I couldn't even bring myself to roll my eyes at his behaviour because honestly the day's events had drained my that much, in the distance the distinct sound of the front door being jerked open violently told me it was time to leave and after one last look at the Marshall family that is exactly what I did.

Seeing Bear sat right where I'd left him made me smile, it may have taken the apocalypse for it to happen but finally I'd found a man that actually listened to me...shame about the species. With shopping bag safely back on my shoulder the two of us started towards the exit, I was almost out the door when something hanging from the coat rack caught my attention; my grin widen slightly as I moved aside a brightly coloured jacket to reveal the black leash buried behind it. Slipping the lead off the hook I crouched down quickly and clipped it onto Bear's collar, he seemed to be doing alright walking to heel without any restraint but better to be safe than sorry; with my furry friend now fully secured I stepped out of the house closing and locking the door behind me before setting off down the overgrown path leading to the dusty blue pick-up where the rest of today's' search party were gathered...expect for Daryl who was already sat in the cab brooding. Hearing my approach the three men stopped talking and turned in the direction of the building, upon setting eyes on my form their neutral expressions suddenly changed; Shane pulled the large shotgun he carried off his shoulder before taking a small (cautious) step forward.

"You alright?" The ex-officer asked as his dark orbs began checking me over.

"Peachy." He continued his inspection as I walked closer making me feel like I was missing something, glancing down I came face-to-face with a large patch of blood that stained the front of my shirt...huh, no wonder they were giving me such strange looks; it must have transferred onto me while I was moving Janet's body because there was no way that much could have hit me during the walker battle in the kitchen. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted that mangy moggy from before hiding in the bushes once again, however much I would like to taking the cat would be impossible they are independent animals at the worst of times but imagine trying to wrangle one during a walker attack? Feeling guilty about leaving it here and also about ruining the felines chances of having dinner I slipped my hand into the tote and pulled out the bag of treats hidden inside, after popping the seal I proceeded to tip the small plastic sack so that the contents fell out onto the grass; I could feel the animals sharp eye watching me the entire time and although it might not last the creature long at least it was something. Once empty I stuffed the packet back into my bag becasue even now I couldn't bring myself to litter, after menatlly wishing the skinny beast the best luck I spun round and continued my walk to the truck all the while ignoring the blatant stares of my fellow survivors.

"Am I seeing things...or is that a dog?" The young Korean looked as well as sound extremely confused and if I'd been in a better mood I would gladly have explained things to him but right now all I wanted to do was get back to camp, take a shower and then go to sleep.

"Nah man." Shane said sourly after a moment of silence. "Looks like we're takin' in strays now too?"

* * *

><p><strong>Authors Note (pt. 2):<strong>** Comments are always welcome and appreciated. Major thanks to all who reviewed/alerted/favorited it means a lot. Chapter 7 will hopefully be up in a few weeks...a month tops but until then here's a little spoiler of what you can expect:~**_'Everyone's favourite squirrel killer crashes Dr Ellis' alone time once again but this time things end a little differently.'_


	8. Chapter Seven

_Hello_! _I am so very sorry for the exceedingly long wait, unfortunately I have had the worst case of writers block known to man_ _making this chapter hell to finish. Big thanks to all who reviewed/alerted/favorited the last one it really means a lot__ so if you have a second p__lease leave a comment and tell me what you think. Anyhow, here is chapter seven **finally** hope you enjoy._

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer: I do not own <em>The Walking Dead<em> in any way and by no means profit from writing this fic; Charlotte and her family however are of my creation so in the nicest way possible HANDS OFF!**

It was mid-afternoon by the time we arrived back at camp. As the vehicle slowly climbed the dirt trail leading to the ramshackle settlement I spied a large assembly of anxious and eager faces gathered to meet us upon our return, Daryl's dusty pick-up had barely come to a stop before it was descended upon by the other survivors. If Shane hadn't been there to take charge I honestly believe that by the time I'd managed to fight my way through the mass of bodies to the truck bed only a few scraps would've been left; like a true leader he calmly explained to everyone what was going to happen with the new _'communal'_ provisions and once the whole group was in agreement a small team was designated the job of sorting through the goods while another set to work making a hearty lunch to celebrate our haul. My plans for a shower were well and truly scuppered due to it already being occupied and also the fact that I had been volunteered (without consent may I add) to help with the organization of supplies; after I don't know how long of silently sitting dividing and stacking cans of various contents everyone was called to lunch but being in no mood to eat or socialize I skipped the meal in favour of trying to get some rest. It seemed that the world was against me in every way possible today because every time my weary sapphire eyes dropped horrific and bloody images of the family I'd lost kept invading my mind, chasing away every last wisp of sleep; it wasn't until an altered version of today's events began playing -but with Ashley taking the place of young Hannah Marshall- that I finally gave up and returned to the campfire. My foul attitude had been amplified by the failed rest attempt and it was obvious the others could tell but instead of steering clear and leaving me be I was ushered over to the fire by Lori and set to work prepping some mushrooms that must have been foraged at some point while we were away. The sky had turned a shade darker and the entire camp had settled down for a lovely dinner of rabbit and mixed tin (except mushroom) vegetable stew but instead of joining in the jovial banter which echoed around me I remained sat in the same place I'd been put several hours earlier wordlessly watching the flames dance in the dimming light.

"Charlotte?" Being directly addressed for the first time that evening was enough to pull me from my stupor, shaking my head I quickly blinked away the black spots that had evaded my vision due to watching the fire for such an extended amount of time and turned toward the silver haired man who had spoken; going on voice tone alone I had suspicions but as soon as my azure eyes found his chocolate ones I knew one hundred percent that the friendly gent was concerned for me. "Is everything alright? You aren't eating." Glancing down I silently eyed the untouched food sat in the bowl, usually as soon as anything edible was but down in front of me it was gone in a matter of seconds but after today's experience my appetite just wasn't there.

"Not hungry." Nobody else in the group seemed to have the same problem in fact some of them had already finished, one of said few happened to be Carl Grimes; he was sat a little ways from me using his fork to play with the only thing left on the otherwise empty plate…mushrooms. Jesus, even during the apocalypse children still refuse to eat all their vegetables. "Hey Carl?" At the sound of his name the kids head shot up and bright blue eyes instantly came to rest on me, knowing I now had his attention I stretched my arm out towards him offering up the second helping. "Here. No sense in wasting it." There was only a split second of hesitation before he shuffled forward and took the bowl. His mother who was sat next to him but talking to the camps de facto leader Shane must have felt the boys' movement because she immediately turned to check what was going on; her dark orbs surveyed the scene and once having figured out what had just occurred Lori looked to her son.

"Carl." She said sternly, just as he was bringing a forkful of food up to his mouth. "What do you say?" Pausing shortly the chastised child slowly lowered the utensil back onto his plate then sheepishly glanced back up.

"Thank you." I mustered up as much enthusiasm as possible and sent the brown haired boy a small smile before letting him get back to his dinner.

With the sun almost set it was getting late into the evening and I still hadn't gotten that much needed shower and seeing as everyone was now currently occupied with something it seems like a good time to grab one as well as a little alone time. With a soft sigh I pushed up from the uncomfortable log seat and quickly brushed away all the dust and dirt that had collected on the backs of my jean clad thighs, breaking from the human-statue act after so many hours drew a number of the groups gazes the first of which unsurprising being that of my niece. After returning from the supply run the young girl was the first to sense the shift in my mood and having known me the longest time she knew it best to give me a bit of space to chill out and relax which for her part she's been doing… …though I suspect having a new canine friend to pass the time with was more the cause of her distraction than anything else. As soon as the camp set eyes on Bear they fell in love…well most did; the black and tan bundle of fun was welcomed into the fold with open arms and plenty of pats but it was clear to see almost immediately that he had taken a shine to one-person in particular which is why he now currently sat with his head in Ashley's lap.

"Are you going to bed?" The teen paused her chat with Amy and turned her attention to me; although she had been keeping her distance and had not said anything I could see that the girl was worried about my uncharacteristic behaviour.

"Probably." Like with Carl I tried my hardest to fake a happy smile but being the smart cookie she was Ash saw straight through it, not wanting to get into anything right at that moment I broke eye contact and speedily shifted round to address the other members of the group. "Goodnight everyone." A chorus of replies echoed back as I took my leave and started towards the Ellis family tent, on the way it was unavoidable to have to pass by the Dixons and thankfully only the lesser of two evils sat outside; Merle had been noticeably absent all afternoon meaning he was either out on a hunt or unconscious inside the little lodging. Hearing someone approach Daryl raised his head and glanced round, once those icy blue orbs of his spotted me however they narrowed dangerously making it plainly obvious that the man was still in a bit of a tizz about what went down earlier; instead of flicking him the bird like I wanted to given my current temper I decided to return the unfriendly glare which only served to worsen the hunters scowl. Shaking my head at the grumpus I descended the dirt slope briefly passing the empty neighbouring tents before coming upon mine and Ashley's home from home; the flap was already up so I just walked straight in, usually it was a tent rule number one to leave shoes at the door but being in a rebel mood that was quickly forgotten. My gear from this afternoon still lay scattered across the uncomfortable cot I'd been using for a bed the past couple of weeks, as a sort of reward for volunteering all five of us that went out were given the chance to pick something from the haul. Except for Daryl who went with a bottle of booze (more than likely on his brothers behalf) the other guys chose food of some sort, I on the other hand opted for the shampoo which had been scavenged from the Marshall home. Grabbing the half-empty bottle I moved it to the opposite end of the cot and dropped it down onto my towel which had been waiting there to be used since this morning. The Ellis family had grown today, therefore the tent had gained a new resident, Ashley had taken it upon herself to sort the canines belongings out which is why Bear's blanket and toys had been set up in the middle section of the shelter alongside the green duffle which also resided there; his bowl had been placed outside by the entrance and as with the rest of camp the dogs food had been placed inside the old station wagon for safe keeping. Brushing a lock of hair out of my face I bent down and scooped up the small bundle, there was still enough light out so I was alright in that regard but going off into the woods alone and without any protection isn't worth the risk so in a flash my pistol was back in its makeshift holster. With all necessities in hand I made to leave…and almost had a heart attack in the process. "Christ Ashley!" Silently lurking in the doorway like some weird little creeper stood none other than the brunette teen and there by her side looking like butter wouldn't melt was Bear.

"Sorry." She said softly with a tiny apologetic smile playing on her lips; I narrowed my eyes at the pair before moving aside to let them in. The canine trotted in immediately and went straight over to his bed, collapsing into a furry heap as soon as his paws touched the soft fleece (the poor pup had been through a lot today so who can blame him); Ashley hesitated for a moment before slipping out of her shoes and finally stepping through the entrance.

"Unless you're actually trying to kill me, next time make a little noise would you?"

"Sure thing." Ash flashed another tight grin and dodged passed me to enter her side of the tent; I silently watched as she puttered around tidying up anything which lay strewn across the floor, once that was done the young brunette plonked herself down onto the air mattress with an audible huff. Obviously she had followed me in here for a reason and as bad as it sounds I was strongly contemplating just walking out to avoid the whole thing but unfortunately my alarm bells had begun ringing as soon as she _willingly_ started cleaning and even in this foul of a mood I wasn't one to ignore my niece when it's so clear to see that there was something bothering her. Spinning on the spot and with shower supplies pressed tightly to my chest I turned my attention to the girl who currently sat picking at her nails.

"Spit it out." The teens head shot up, big brown eyes pinning me instantly confusion evident in there depths. "Whatever you've got to say, say it." Her mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried and failed to come up with the right words, unfortunately today was not the day to keep me waiting and as a result my frustration was steadily building and I was having a hard time keeping a lid on it. "Ashley?"

"Okay." With a faint sigh she dropped her hands into her lap where they quickly connected, slim fingers twiddling with each other out of nervousness. "So…I don't want to pry or anything but you've been really quiet ever since you got back this afternoon and I'm also pretty sure you haven't eaten anything today except breakfast." Chocolate orbs continued there silent assault even going so far as to take on the puppy dog quality people were so fond of using when they wanted something; after a brief pause she carried on and this time instead of pussyfooting around got straight down to the point. "Are you sure you're alright?" All it took was for me to hear those few words and I was another inch closer to my breaking point and considering how many times I'd already heard them this afternoon you can imagine just how near to the edge I really am.

"I'm fine." It took a few minutes but I finally managed to get something out in a reasonably calm voice…unfortunately though it did not stop at that because my mouth seemed to possess a mind of its own today "But the next person who asks me that question sure as hell won't be." Ashley did a good job trying to hide her surprise at hearing my snappy tone but the wide eyes and furrowed brow gave it away, this little incident made it blindingly clear that I needed to leave before something was said that would probably be regretted later. "Go on back and finish your food Ash, I'm just going to have a quick shower and then hit the hay."

"You shouldn't go off alone, Shane said-"

"I couldn't care less what _Shane_ said alright! I've had the day from hell and all I want is a few minutes to myself, is that so much to fucking ask?!" This time the teen made no effort to mask her shock and to be honest I didn't care, all evening someone had been on me for something or another and there is only so much a person can take before they snap…and I've snapped. "I'll be back in a little while….if not, then I guess whatever our fearless leader had to say was probably worth listening to after all." Before she had chance to reply I was gone from the tent and storming off in the direction of the path that led into the woods and out to the clearing a little ways off that the female members of camp used to shower; the majority of the group where too preoccupied with dinner to notice me leaving but since my route took me round the side of one particular dwelling there was no way to avoid going completely unnoticed. The younger Dixon hadn't moved from his spot outside the shared family shelter and now sat contentedly prodding the small fire before him using the end of a crossbow bolt as a poker; outwardly he barely even acknowledged my presence as I strode past but let me tell you I could sure as hell feel those baby blues burning a hole into the back of my head as I disappeared into the trees. It didn't take long to reach the makeshift wet-room and I noticed almost instantly that whoever had been here earlier had thankfully decided to refill the solar shower which hung on a lower branch of one of the bigger trees, there weren't any screens up since it was designated for ladies use only and none of us had anything the other women hadn't seen before (not that anyone showered naked anyways); if anyone happened to have worries about peeping toms than they'd just bring someone they trusted along to keep watch but seeing as all the men were engrossed in other tasks I had no concerns over being spied on. After crossing the short distance to reach the large oak I dumped my stuff at the base of it and proceeded to strip; to keep people from freaking out due to the blood stains I'd ditched my ruined shirt while still in Daryl's truck leaving me in just a simple cami, jean capris and black boots. Circling round I plucked the pistol from my waistband and tossed it onto the ground next to the towel, quickly following to make another small pile on the side were the remainder of my clothes and shoes; now that I was down to just my matching black underwear it was finally time for that long awaited and much anticipated shower. Being that it was filled late afternoon the water hadn't had the opportunity to warm up so at present it was probably about one-step above freezing…but that did not matter in the slightest because it was just what I needed. The steady stream quickly soaked my raven tresses before continuing down to wash away all traces of dirt, mud, blood and whatever else from the rest of my body; it was only when I'd ducked out of the spray to collect the shampoo bottle that I actually noticed the goosebumps littering my skin. Most people would put them down as a result of the icy water but for me it was something else entirely that usually caused a breakout. "Have we not already had this conversation?" Glancing over my shoulder I did a quick scan of the treeline expecting a figure to emerge from the thick vegetation but after several minutes still nobody appeared. "I know you're a hunter and all but I'd appreciate it if you kept the stalking to the animals." After another long wait a faint rustling sounded off to my right; I watched wordlessly as Daryl stepped out of the woods and into the clearing, for the first time I can remember the man was without his crossbow but since he was no idiot and never went anywhere unarmed a large bowie knife remained attached to his belt.

"Shouldn't be out here by yourself."

"So I've been told." Judging by all the obstacles that had been thrown in my path getting any alone time to chill out and wash up was obviously not on the cards for me today; reaching up I grabbed the small showerhead and gave it a twist to stem the flow and conserve the remaining water.

"Then ya got a death wish or somethin'?"

"Not particularly." Water began to trail down my face and like always a few stray droplets managed to worm their way into my eyes, crouching down I quickly snatched up the dry towel from the leaf-covered ground and wiped the residue away; once able to see again I wrapped the terrycloth sheet around my damp body and then turned to address Daryl once again. "But should anything happen, you and Shane have permission to etch _'I told you so' _onto my gravestone."

"That ain't somethin' you should be jokin' bout." He growled sternly.

"Would you rather I cry?" At my sarcastic tone, the sandy haired hunters' stormy blue orbs flared dangerously in anger.

"I'd rather ya pull your head out your ass and cut the dumb bitch routine." Stepping further away from the trees and with muscled arms crossed over his chest Daryl trapped me with a piercing stare. "Ain't just about you no more, keep doin' this stupid shit and that little girl back at camp is gonna be left alone to deal with the fallout." At his blunt words my anger began to bubble, the rising ire had nothing to do with the fact that that backwards bastard had the nerve to come out here and start mouthing off about my resent behaviour but more so that he elected to bring Ashley into it. Silence soon fell over us and the longer it went on the more my rage built, the younger Dixon brother said nothing and instead just continued to watch without a word and that irritated me beyond belief… …it irritated me because deep down, I knew he was right. For the latter part of the day I'd been a royal bitch to all and sundry and what was worst the way I had acted towards Ash had been absolutely vile; eventually I would have come to the conclusion on my own and at that point guilt would have been the primary emotion, however in this instance I had forced into realising the error of my ways by a man who had no right chastising anybody and that caused anger to override my shame.

"Why are you here Daryl?" I snapped suddenly which actually seemed to catch the man by surprise. "You could have called me on this in camp, hell you could have done it back at the house…why wait until now?" He may not have meant for his words to affect me in this way but unfortunately for him they had and now I wanted payback, it was time for the big bad hunter to get a taste of his own medicine and I knew one sure fire way to make him feel as uncomfortable as he had made me. After brushing a damp tendril of raven hair out of my face I glanced up and almost immediately locked stares with Daryl; now completely sure that his attention was solely mine I took a small step forward, intense blue eyes following my every step. "Did you just want the free show?" Such a simple statement could have elicited any number of responses from him but causing a blush to envelop his cheeks deeper than I had ever seen before would not have been something many thought possible. "Don't be embarrassed. I'm flattered you still find me worth watching…not exactly looking my best right now." The soft and sweet tone of voice I was using made his jaw clench tightly and judging by the sandy haired man's shifty stance it was clear he was growing increasingly agitated. My plan was obviously working but getting the guy a little fidgety wasn't enough…not today, it took mere seconds to close the gap between us and once I'd come to a stop only a tiny space was left separating Daryl and me. Slyly I peeked up from under my lashes and silently watched as he continued to squirm under my scrutiny, as soon as I had gotten within an arms width those icy coloured orbs belonging to the hunter had averted and the ticking of his jaw had increased. By this point it was blazing obvious that he was really worked up and if I'd been in my right mind now would have been the perfect time to pull back and leave but unfortunately the trauma of the day combined with running on next to no sleep has made me an idiot…and idiots do stupid things. So that I didn't spook him I tentatively reached out a dainty hand and let slim fingers ghost across the coarse material of the hunters' sleeveless navy blue shirt, even though the relatively thick fabric I could feel his muscles jump under the feather light touch and that spurred me on even more. "Thank you for coming out here to keep an eye on me…I know it's against the _rules_ but sometimes I just want to get away and forget about the shitheap my life has become, if only for a little while." The fact that he had not pushed me away and stormed off by now was surprising enough but during my little speech, he'd actually raised his icy orbs from the ground so that once more they were focused on me. Feeling emboldened I let my hand come to rest on the pocket of the shirt which was located right above his heart; it may have been pure imagination but I swear you could feel the beat, fast and strong, through my palm and that brought a tiny smile to my lips. Blowing out a shaky breath I drew my left hand up and placed in down exactly opposite to the other; it was time to end this so ever so slowly I trailed my gaze up the expanse of his clothed chest until finally our eyes were locked. "Help me forget…please?" Not waiting for a reply I quickly pushed up onto my tiptoes and all but slammed my lips against his, for quite some time the sandy haired hunter remained as stiff as a board not moving any part of himself even an inch. Nothing seemed to rouse him from his stupor not a lick nor a nibble so thinking that I might of broken him I began to pull back but before our lips could part a pair of large roughened hands latched themselves onto my hips causing a slightly muffled gasp to sound. In that moment he suddenly came alive and with a sharp tug I was completely flush against him, feeling the heat of his body soaking into mine was enough to cause a warm flush to blossom all over my skin; at the new contact my back arched and fingers curled balling the fabric beneath them into tight fists.

Honestly my intention was never to go this far, all I'd wanted to do was make him experience the level of discomfort I had been made to feel when he'd starting question my parenting of Ashley; never had I imagined it would reach this level…never had I imagined that _Daryl_ would let it reach this level. Aside from the initial pull to keep use together he seemed extremely hesitant, letting me have control for the most part and coming from a guy who seemed so powerful and strong it was surprising but not as much as how soft his lips were; I didn't even know it was possible for a man who sneakily smokes and spends the majority of his time in the woods to have lips smoother and suppler than most women's. It was a refreshing change to take the lead and set the pace, from previous experience usually the man liked to be in charge by with Daryl that didn't seem to be the case…I rather liked it actually and judging by the low hum and vice grip the younger Dixon was liking it too. Suddenly a sobering wave hit me and in an instant all thoughts of retaliation fled…what the hell am I doing? From day one all he had ever been was kind to me and Ash; so what do I do to repay that, I go and treat him like some sort of plaything because my feeling were hurt…how pathetic and childish is that?

With a firm shove to his solid chest the intimate contact between us was broken. Neither Daryl nor I spoke for what felt like a lifetime, making the only noise filling the otherwise soundless space being that of our combined heavy breathing; it took a little while but before long a strange stillness returned to the clearing bringing with it a tense air. I was so ashamed of my behaviour that I could not bear to look him in the eye, fearing what I might see; Daryl on the other hand had no reservations as I could almost feel his piercing stare. We stayed in this unpleasant cycle of silence for a moment more before I finally sucked up the courage to raise my head, naturally it didn't take long to catch his eye. In the short time I'd known him it was made clear that he was the type of man that tried his absolute best to keep his emotions hidden and under wraps but in that brief moment the wall was down and what I saw swirling in there stormy depths was enough to make me what to cry. When I was a child my mother had always been able to tell what I was feeling even if I lied or tried to hide it, back then I believed it to be her superpower or something. It wasn't until later when I was about ten or eleven I think that she actually told me that the real reason she could do that was because of my eyes; I guess it makes sense when you think about it…they are windows to the soul after all. Unfortunately for me today was no different meaning that all the disgust and embarrassment I had for myself in that instant was there plain as day for all to see. The exact moment Daryl became aware of this tell was obvious because in a split second the wall was up again in force and a stoniness descended over his features like I'd never seen before; the complete 180 confused me at first but when he angrily snatched his hands back from my body and suddenly pulled away something clicked...he thought I was felling those things because of _him_.

"Unbelievable." He spat with a vicious scowl set on his lips. "Screw this."

"Daryl…-" Before I could begin to explain he'd turned and started back towards the trees he had first appeared from, not wanting things to end this way I followed right after him and not even bare feet on the forest floor was going to stop me. "Wait, Daryl." Unlike our first out of camp chat he didn't give in to my plea straight away so this time I had to get a bit more forceful, without thinking my hand shot out and encircled his wrist. "Stop!" He may have had possibly every single physical advantage over me but you would be surprised at just how strong a woman's willpower can be, knowing full well I'm going to regret this in the morning I dug my bare heels into the ground making myself a human anchor; thankfully hauling a dead weight back to camp didn't appeal to the sandy haired man because he came to a halt after only a few steps. As a gesture of good faith I released my death grip on his arm; for a second it seemed like he'd only stopped so I would let go but after a beat longer he did eventually turn, eyes narrowed and jaw set. "I'm sorry okay." A loud scoff slipped through his lips but I continued regardless. "This sort of thing…it isn't me." Daryl shot me an incredulous look that blatantly said _'Seriously? You fuckin' started it.'_ "I'm not like you alright. I can't just do this…_stuff_ with a near complete stranger and then go about as if nothing ever happened….it's not who I am, now or ever." Sighing softly I ran a hand over my face, exhaustion and frustration adding to the already volatile mix bubbling inside of me; glancing back up I was forced to take a small step back because at some point the younger Dixon had silently stalked forward his baby blues now alight with fire.

"Ya think you're so damn smart huh? Got everythin' fingered out?" His naturally low voice held a darker edge and my heart started to beat that little bit harder; bending slightly he brought his face down level with mine and as close as possible without touching. It was hard keeping up a calm façade when an angry redneck was stood so close you could feel his hot breath fanning over your face but I managed to stay strong because at the end of the day this was my fault and he had every right to be mad. "Well let me tell ya something lady…you don't know shit about me, so quit actin' like ya do." The harshness of his words stung and it took a lot not to openly flinch, I was not given a chance to reply however because Daryl had already decided this conversation was over; after one last bitter sneer had been sent in my direction he straightened up and disappeared into the forest. I had a strong inkling from the very start that he would react badly to my plan, probably end up being pissed as hell, but never had I thought he would get so very angry; it was only then as I stood alone in the ever-darkening clearing that the full extent of the damage I'd done truly dawned on me.

"Oh God. What have I done?"


End file.
